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Allyssa’s heart sank when she realized her cuddly cat Stitch wasn’t himself. Stitch was Allyssa’s baby—the youngest of her five pets. He’s usually loving, cuddly, and playfully mischievous, but the three-year old cat wasn’t eating or drinking and yowled when he was picked up.
Stitch is an important part of Allyssa’s family. Allyssa, her boyfriend, and their three year old daughter live together with a dog, three cats, and a bearded dragon! Allyssa suffers from a chronic pain illness, and Stitch is a special part of her life. He is her constant companion. When she is experiencing a flare up in her illness, Stitch checks in on her, giving cuddles when needed, which help her handle the pain.
When Stitch got sick, the family took him to their primary care veterinary clinic and discovered he had a urinary blockage. This is a condition in which the urethra becomes blocked and the cat is unable to urinate. This can cause toxins to build up in the cat’s bloodstream, making it painful, life-threatening and important to treat quickly.
“I thought I was going to lose him and my heart was breaking inside of me.”
Allyssa was crushed. “I thought I was going to lose him and my heart was breaking inside of me.” But she needed to stay strong for her daughter, who loved Stitch too.
Treatment for blocked cats is often very expensive, as it involves an unblocking procedure that can cost thousands of dollars. For Allyssa and her family, money is tight, and that sort of expense they just couldn’t make happen. The clinic referred them to Mission Animal Hospital. Alyssa believes that referral saved Stitch’s life.
As the only independent nonprofit veterinary hospital in the Midwest, here at Mission Animal Hospital we believe that every person deserves the benefits of a relationship with their pet, like the relationship Alyssa has with Stitch, regardless of financial circumstances. Our team works with families to ensure their pets get the care they need, offering a spectrum of care options, donor-funded subsidies, and no-interest payment plans.
Mission was able to provide a different option for care for Stitch. Instead of surgery, our doctor’s treated Stitch used catheters and IV fluids to flush out Stitch’s balder and remove the blockage. This option is less expensive than surgery and ultimately saved Stitch’s life.
Allyssa and her family were so grateful.
“I thought for sure that I lost him! But Mission did an awesome job. The staff took him back and started on him right away. They kept me updated more than I thought they would, which helped me a lot.”
By saving Stitch, Mission Animal Hospital was able to help Alyssa and her family live their best life with Stitch. We were able to help the family avoid making the impossible decision of going into further debt or saying goodbye to Stitch forever. Now, Alyssa still has her best friend and companion to help her through her chronic pain, and with the help of our donors, we’ve been able to ease those financial constraints for Stitch’s care.
“I got lucky enough to find Mission, and they saved his life. He gets to live out his life, because that is what he deserves!”