Help Save Meatball

Meatball’s Story

Around three years ago a beautiful male stray cat began visiting us through our cat flap, eating our cat’s food. He was such a handsome boy yet in such a bedraggled state, with ticks on his face and matted fur, that despite our own cat’s protests we did all we could to encourage him in the hope that we could help.

Initially he was terrified of humans and would snarl at us and run away whenever we approached him, but we persevered. We named him Meatball , a name that really suits him to this day. We believe Meatball had been treated badly by humans in the past and was forced to live on the periphery of society, scraping an existence by finding food and shelter wherever he could. After months of showing kindness to Meatball, including feeding him by lying down on the ground with a handful of wet cat food in my hand, we eventually gained his trust. Gradually, we groomed him, wormed him, de-flead him and cared for him until his eyes burned bright once more.


Whilst still displaying some feral qualities, he became a regular in our home and our children and ourselves would treat him like a beloved family pet whenever he chose to visit us. I often shared pictures and videos of Meatball’s latest antics on social media and many friends were pleased to read of his progress.

Unfortunately last week on Friday 9th February, Meatball dragged himself through our cat flap using only his front paws after being hit by a car. His back legs were in a bad way and he was crying out in pain asking for our help. He had come “home” to us because he had no one else to turn to in his time of need. I rushed home from work and took him straight to the vets. We were told that he had a fractured pelvis and would also need one of his legs amputated immediately with a 50/50 chance of survival. We agreed to personally fund the £900 for the operation as the only alternative was to put him to sleep and no way were we going to let that happen to Meatball.



The operation has been a success and Meatball is now a tri-paw. However we have a problem; Meatball has been unable to pass urine without assistance since the accident. The vets believe that this may not be due to nerve damage but could be because Meatball is still in great pain and needs time to heal. As he cannot empty his bladder himself at present, we have been personally funding his hospitalization at the vets since the operation to allow them to assist with this, but our available funds are getting low and time is running out.

We weren’t keen on the idea of crowd funding at first, however after being touched by Meatball’s plight, friends came forward keen to help him and persuaded us to setup this page. We are frustrated that Meatball has been so brave and come so far, yet may still need to be put to sleep, just for the sake of a few days or weeks to allow him to heal. Hospitalisation costs £55 per night and around £50 for catheterisation when required.
We cannot guarantee that he will fully recover, however we cannot stand by and let him die.


Please consider donating to help Meatball. No amount is too small and any amount donated will go to fund further days in hospital to allow him to heal and recover. If you cannot afford to donate, please share this page.

He has a forever home waiting with us and a family who love him. We are prepared to give him all the TLC and rest he requires to repair his fractured pelvis and recover from amputation, with 24/7 care. We just need him to be well enough to bring home. PLEASE, PLEASE, HELP SAVE MEATBALL. Thank You