Determined to Have Surgery

Since seeing the oncologist I have felt trapped in a whirlwind, unable to catch my breath. I have to admit, at first it was like having the wind knocked out of me. I couldn't see any way that I was going to be able to raise over $5,000. My fundraiser has had some donations but nothing near the amount needed for the number one option surgery.  We haven't gotten any of the items on our wishlist. I felt pretty hopeless and utterly helpless. If you have ever had to put your best friend down or lost them to a curable sickness because you didn't have enough money, you know the combined inability to catch your breath/nausea/vertigo/unbearable pain sensation that I am talking about.

The tumor looked bigger yesterday (8-20).
That isn't very reassuring.

My poverty could cost my beloved Pheona her life. Every time that though goes through my head it feels like I have been punched in the gut all over again.

While I was feeling rather low and hopeless an old friend sent me a list of agencies that might be able to help me pay for Pheona's treatment. I felt a spark of hope reignite within me when I realized what I was looking at. I had no idea that all of these organizations were out there! There were at least a dozen agencies on that list. I sat down at my computer and got to work. I had some applications to fill out!

I hope this is just average mast cell tumor "shape-shifting",
as they are known to do.

Thanks to a photo meme my week has been filled with financial aid applications. Not all of the agencies have funds, some only help cats, some you have to live in certain places and a few don't seem to have any way to apply so I need to check on them further. That makes the list a lot shorter, but it didn't remove all of them. Then two of the places I sent an application to replied with more possible resources!

I have submitted a couple of applications that were pretty simple and am working on gathering all of the proof of income some of the other ones want. Late Tuesday afternoon I got a message to call one of the agencies the next day if I still needed help. I called them yesterday and they asked for a copy of the vet estimate and some photos of Pheo, which I sent them right away.  I was surprised and ecstatic to wake up this morning to an email from The Mosby Foundation-- they have pledged $500 (their max) towards the surgery!!!

Here is what the email said, 
"Dear Julie,

Thanks to a generous grant from the Petco Foundation and Blue Buffalo, The Mosby Foundation is able to pledge $500.00 toward Pheona’s tumor removal. If you have applied or will apply to other organizations for assistance, it may be beneficial to make them aware of our donation......  

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS PLEDGE IS ONLY GOOD FOR 60 DAYS FROM THE DATE OF THIS EMAIL. ONCE YOU HAVE SCHEDULED A SURGERY/TREATMENT DATE, BE SURE TO NOTIFY US AT LEAST 3-4 BUSINESS DAYS IN ADVANCE SO THAT WE MAY CALL IN OUR PAYMENT.

We are happy that we could help your furkid!" YAAAAAAAY!!!!

"OMG! OMG! OMG!
The Mosby Foundation ROCKS!
I wuf them!"

I am anxious to get this surgery scheduled, I want my girl to feel like her old self again as soon as possible and this pledge for assistance expires in 60 days. I do not want to lose this important grant. It is 10% of what I need and I am confident that there is going to be more places that want to help. Every little bit matters and every penny gets me one step closer to curing my baby.

The oncologist increased her prednisone for 2 weeks in an attempt to shrink the tumor before surgery. That doesn't seem to affect her alertness but the Benadryl sure does! We decided to try to raise her Benadryl up to the full pill twice per day that is prescribed so she gets the full benefit. Now we are having a lot more pee accidents again though. When we get this tumor off, she won't need all of these drugs and so she should be right back to her peppy, playful self as soon as her surgery wound heals. Right now her quality of life is hit and miss. Mostly she is too medicated to care about much at all. Seeing her like that makes me incredibly sad.

I better get back to the financial aid applications, I just wanted to take a few minutes to check in about where we are today. Today we are feeling much more optimistic; we are also grateful for charitable organizations and people like you. If you haven't donated to our fundraiser or purchased one of the items on our wishlist yet please consider doing so. We also need everyone who can to share our story. The more people who see it, the more chance we have at reaching out goal of surgical removal of the lump and tail. Thank you! <3