Monday, September 5, 2011

Miss Annie's Surgery

If you don't know Annie's story, the last few posts have been about her.  In a nutshell, her previous owners were going to take her to a shelter if they couldn't find a home for her before they moved.  We took her in hopes of finding her home.  Just one day after we brought her home, she started peeing blood.  After several trips to the vet, a urinalysis and an x-ray, it was discovered she has stones. 

The vet called me last Friday with the estimate.  It's going to cost $2,000 for the surgery to remove the stones.  In my wildest worries about the price, I never thought it would be this much.  I spoke with Trish at Katnip Lounge, who by the way, is wonderful and funny too, just like her blog. Her Grayce had this same procedure in Las Vegas for about $800. Plus, her surgery was laproscopic, which seems to have a considerable less recovery time.  I've called three vets in this area.  They all charge the same price, if not more, and none of them does the laproscopic surgery. 

I've received several ideas and even some vets to call.  I'll definitely be calling around starting Tuesday after the holiday weekend to try to find a cheaper vet. I really appreciate all the encouragement and info!  I need to also look into somehow making some extra money but I'm not sure where to start.

Although the blood seems to have abated considerably, Annie is still going to the litter box constantly.  Other than that, she seems to feel well.  She loves to play.  She's also spending a little less time under the bed and isn't growling quite as much.  Lucy and Simba have been wonderful.

I hope you're enjoying the three-day weekend!

20 comments:

  1. I think this is an obscene amount to charge, particularly given the discrepancy in cost between the Lounge's vet and those in your area.

    I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you find a good vet who is more reasonable.

    And I'd like to suggest you add a "chip in" to your blog, or PayPal donate button. Seriously. Even if people are just able to donate a few dollars, believe me, it all adds up pretty quickly.

    -Kim from Fuzzy Tales

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh Dear Annie,

    I hope I could help you. $2000 , That's a lots of green papers. I do paw crossed and I hope your mommy find the new VET for you for cheaper prize. and I send a ton of purrs for Annie.

    I think CB can help you, they help all mommies in need about some extra green paper, They can do Auction for you. but my mom are not sure about the detail, you may can ask Mom Trish, or contact the CB.

    I wish you all the best for Annie
    Purrs
    xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  3. I am so so sorry that you and Annie are going thru this. That is, as Kea said, an obscene amount of money to charge. If they don't any of them do laproscopic surgery then they aren't qualified to do so..and I would hate to have them blunder about on MY baby learning! I hope to goodnedss something happens soon for you and Annie.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi there Annie, we sure hope you can find a better and less expensive vet. If the bleeding has slowed down some and she doesn't seem to feel bad, then maybe the vet diagnosed her wrong too. Don't you live in Calif?? If so write to Sparkle and ask her if she knows any really good vets.
    Also I can talk to ML at the cat blogosphere and see if we can do an auction for you. It is a little soon after the SAS one but we can do one soon if you need to.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Miss Annie, we are so happy you are starting to feel at home! Are you eating wet fudz yet? They are really yummy, please try 'em!
    We have some items to auction if you decide to have one, and we second Fuzzy Tails--put up a donation button, every green paper helps!

    Love, Grayce and The Horde

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm appalled by the price of pet care. We have good health insurance for ourselves but there's nothing equal it on the pet market. We're retired. When our current pets are gone we will not replace them because vet care is too expensive.

    ReplyDelete
  7. We are purraying for sweet Annie.......it is a crime what vets are charging for pet care nowdays.

    Many of us can't afford health insurance for ourselves much less for our darlins'.

    xxxxxxxx

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh we're glad Annie is doing a bit better. And we sure hope you can find a vet that can do the surgery for a lot less! That does seem like a lot of money!! Lucy and Simba, we're glad you guys are being good.

    Island Cats' mom: As others have suggested, you may want to consider putting a chip-in button on your blog. Every little bit adds up!

    ReplyDelete
  9. So sorry to hear about that enormous vet quote and I do hope you find someone who can help Annie at a more reasonable cost. Good luck with the ringing around. Chipin is a good idea too, very little helps.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Oopsie that should have said EVERY little helps!!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Wow. That's very steep indeed. I sure hope you are able to get a second opinion that offers the laproscopic surgery at a more reasonable rate. Do you have charities that can help subsidize vet fees?

    ReplyDelete
  12. Glad you asked Sparkle. Let us know what you find out tomorrow about some different vets but make sure you get a good one. Get some recommendations if you can. We are talking about an auction for you if we can. I sure will work on it. Take care.

    ReplyDelete
  13. It's too bad that health care isn't more reasonable for our pets. The difference between Trish's cost for the laproscopic surgery is a huge difference. I hope you can find a more reasonable priced vet.

    Poor Annie. I wonder if that's why the previous owners didn't want her. I guess I am not too trusting. I've had two such experiences in the past.

    Hugs to all
    Iris and her little zoo

    ReplyDelete
  14. Good Grief!!! What an extreme amount of money! Particularly when you are tryihg to provide Annie with a home! Really hope you mznage to find a more economical fee for this treatment & Annie is granted with a life she deserves!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Oh my Lord! He, they all in your area, should be ashamed for charging that much! Well, we believe what you give is what you get, so someday it's not going to be so pleasant to be one of them. Hmpf! Okay, we purring for sweet Annie, and you too Mum, and Lucy and Simba for doing so good to help the way they are. We agree with Fuzzy Tails Mom, and Katnip Lounge Mom, and Marg, and Island Cats' Mom. Like Mr. Puddy, we were hoping to help, but gosh, we can't help a lot. Just keep checking things out like you doing, and let the CB help. You gots the best of the best helping you :-) We will always do what we can to help too.

    (((hugs))) to you all.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I did not expect that it could be this high. I just clicked Chip In a few minutes ago. Every bit helps!

    Take care!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Bonjour dear friends,
    I'm worried about the sweet Annie, I'm praying here for her fast recover.
    purrs and love to your hearts,
    Luna

    ReplyDelete
  18. You were wondering why these people wanted to leave Annie in a shelter. I think that the 2000 dollars may be a beginning of the answer..
    I'll try to see if I can send euros by your button. If not, tell me by mail what I could do..

    ReplyDelete
  19. I hope you won't mind: I took Annie's picture and made a button from it on my blog. I hope it will help you!

    ReplyDelete
  20. So there are three of you again! Hi Annie, you look like a very sweet ladycat. All paws crossed that your new mom can find a cheaper vet. The price difference is enormous, it really shouldn't be that much. Many purrs!

    ReplyDelete

I love comments like I love ham