Please Help Save Prada

These last few weeks have been a total nightmare for our family. We’ve been largely silent about this because honestly, we didn’t know what we’d be sharing. Our little tortoiseshell girl, Prada, started experiencing these small tremors, akin to what you would normally see in an elderly person. This was indeed concerning, so we brought her to our local veterinarian, Lisbon Road Animal Hospital, to see what was going on. Due to Prada not being able to replicate the tremors whilst in the office, our concerns were shrugged off. It was suggested that we attempt to catch the tremors on video, and show the veterinarian during her wellness check on July 7th.

We were quickly able to record said tremors, and contacted the vet again because they were only getting worse. This time, we demanded to see another veterinarian. Blood work was conducted and sent out for processing, and we were told that we’d get a call back. That call never came. After giving the office over the weekend and a few days to get back to us, we called back and found out some chilling news - Prada had a blood glucose level of over 500 and was diabetic. With this information, I have no idea why the office decided that we didn’t need to know about it immediately, taking five full days to tell us news that most people would consider to be an emergency situation.

After fighting with the vet, we were able to obtain some more blood work and an ultrasound the following day, it was found that Prada had an additional infection that required surgery, and she was scheduled for that procedure the following Tuesday. As Prada is only a 5lb cat, it was theorized that the infection had caused the diabetes, and that surgery and medication would resolve it. So with our full trust in the veterinarian, Prada went in for surgery.

Upon being discharged, her behavior became bizarre. She was drinking feverishly, soaking the front half of her body in her water dish, and pacing around our bedroom restlessly. The following day, she was eating like a little pig, drinking, taking her medications as normal, and finally getting some rest - we thought that she was on the road to recovery - but we were dead wrong.

The next day, Prada wouldn’t get out of bed - Nor would she wouldn’t eat or drink. We rushed her in to see the veterinarian, who gave her pain meds and subcutaneous fluids, but wouldn’t do any further testing as Prada was due in the following day for her blood glucose check. That evening she seemed slightly better, eating just a little bit of food and some leftover turkey. We even got up at 2am to administer her second dose of pain meds so that she’d be comfortable.

The next day, my hopes were high. I was looking forward to her blood glucose dropping and her surgery being successful, but again, I was dead wrong. Her blood glucose had skyrocketed and she required immediate overnight hospitalization. The veterinarian started her on a type of insulin called Vetsulin, as well as IV fluids. As their office isn’t 24 hours, Prada had to be transported an hour away after 4:30pm to be treated by Maine Veterinary Medical Center - Maine’s only Level 1 Trauma and Critical Care facility - and only 1 of 26 such facilities in the USA.

She was admitted into the Scarborough facility that evening and placed on a 72 to 96 hour hold. Things were far more dire than our local veterinarian had led on. Her blood glucose was over 600, she had high levels of ketones in her urine, and was in a complete diabetic crisis. They had to redo all of the same testing our local veterinarian had already done, and much more was discovered: kidney disease, an enlarged adrenal gland, potassium so low that she could have died just from that, a heart gallop, severe dehydration, and so much more. That evening, we slept with our phones just in case we’d get a call letting us know we needed to rush back to say goodbye to her.

Thankfully, the following morning we got good news. Prada was responding to the slow drip of insulin, and her numbers were starting to normalize. Instead of Vetsulin, she was going to be prescribed Lantus - normal human insulin. We even were able to visit her that evening for snuggles and to learn how to give injections. She was in great spirits despite her ordeal - they had shaved about ¼ of her fur, and she had 4 IV ports coming out of her neck and leg. All she wanted to do was munch on wet food and cuddle with us. She begged us to take her home, and it was excruciating to not be able to that day.

There were some major takeaways from this. To start, Prada was simply diabetic - the infection didn’t cause the diabetes. Rather, it was the reverse. It came on quickly and without warning, as Prada is skinny and isn’t at risk for developing it. Due to this, the diabetes should have been treated and managed prior to the surgery taking place. All veterinary offices should have the same level of care and access to treatments, but sadly, this isn’t the case. An option we were provided at our local veterinarian’s office was to “do nothing.” In doing nothing, Prada would have simply died a horrible death. This should never be an option for ANY family.

Unfortunately, the level of care needed to save Prada came at a massive cost to our family. We were quoted $6,246.70 to $8,228.00 for her treatment. Thankfully, she stabilized quicker than expected, and the end cost was $4,761.46 for her stay. This does not include the $2,503.60 already spent over the last three weeks at Lisbon Road Animal Hospital, or the special foods and medications that they suggested that she didn’t end up ultimately needing, gas for three separate 2-hour round trip drives, and the medications and diabetic supplies that have to be purchased at a normal pharmacy for her. Prada has a follow up visit in Scarborough with an internal medicine specialist to pinpoint the best course of treatment considering that she’s a diabetic with kidney disease. We are not sure how much this is going to cost, or what further treatment she will need. We explored pet insurance, but sadly, they do not seem to cover pre-existing conditions.

Although Prada is stable for now, and her prognosis is considered very good with treatment, we do not know if another crisis will be in Prada’s future. We’re completely out of resources with all of our credit cards maxed out to cover her treatment. If she were to go into diabetic crisis again in the near future, which is possible due to her condition, we would not have the money available to save her, and would be faced with an extremely heartbreaking decision. The only facility that’s equipped to save her life is Maine Veterinary Medical Center, and they come at a very high cost. It would destroy us to have to say goodbye to Prada, knowing full well she could live a long and happy life with money being the only barrier in the way of that.

I know times are tough for everyone, but any small bit helps us reach our goal to be able to keep Prada happy and healthy. Even sharing this GoFundMe helps tremendously. Prada means a lot to our family, and the events of these past few weeks have been terrifying. 2022 has already brought its share of tragedy to our family, as we lost our boy, Kitan, in March due to inoperable stage 4 cancer. We could not handle it if we lost Prada too. I want to thank everyone that’s taken the time to read Prada’s story, as well as those who have shared and donated to this campaign. Thank you, and keep your fur babies close.