funding for medical help

does anyone know of any funding resources or organizations that help
low income people
get medical treatment for their pets?

i'm aware of aaha and the pet fund.org, but i wouldn't qualify for aaha
(because the specialist hospital i have my cat in isn't on their
"approved" list") and i'm not sure the pet fund would be able to help
me in time.

thanks

"rumble" wrote in message
oups.com...
does anyone know of any funding resources or organizations that help
low income people
get medical treatment for their pets?

i'm aware of aaha and the pet fund.org, but i wouldn't qualify for aaha
(because the specialist hospital i have my cat in isn't on their
"approved" list") and i'm not sure the pet fund would be able to help
me in time.

What is going on with your cat?



Inviato da X-Privat.Org - Registrazione gratuita http://www.x-privat.org/join.php

long story... (aren't the all?)

1 month ago i took her in for her shots and because her ear allergies
were bothering her again so i wanted the vet to look at them.

they gave me otomax which i applied in very small doese (which seemed
to work most of the time).

after i stopped a week later i noticed her head tremoring for a minute
or so when she was in bed with me, then it calmed down. i went to work
the next day and when i got home at 6pm i saw it happning again, so i
called the vet at 6:10 and asked them what time they closed.

they said 6pm, so i asked if i could bring her in. they said they
stopped intakes at 6, and i said i only lived 10 mins from there, but
they still wouldn't do it, soi called the next vet that i knew would be
open (40 miles away) and asked if i could bring her in. they said if i
could get there by 7:15 they could see her. so i drove about 80-90 mph
to get there in time, and i had my regular vet fax her records down
there.

according to the 2nd vet she had lost over 1/4 pound in a week (from
the other vet's fax) and said just looking at her (she had stopped
eating her dry food a month or so ago) and hadn't had a bm in a few
days now. she suspected (without doing any tests) that it could be
hyperthyroidism because of her weight loss, a heart murmur she heard,
and she was shaking a little (she always shook at the vet's - she's a
nervous cat..) and also said possible kidney failure.

i was devastated to hear all that. she was always skinny, and i just
thought she was being finicky about her food.

i asked her how long she might live if i got her treatment right away
and she told me 6 months.

i was crushed. she asked me if i wanted her to do blood tests and i
said no, that i would schedule them with my vet the next day (which i
did). she also upped the dosage on the otomax to 3-4 drops 2x day in
each ear (of which i only did 2 drops instead of my usual 1 drop in
each ear which i continued for 2 days then stopped because of side
effect warnings and other warnings from people on this list.-- i.e. why
they increased the dosage in a cat that may have vestibular problems
because of the shaking and possible kidney problems??)

made an appt. for 2pm. got there, and they wouldn't admit me because
the LOST/COULDN"T FIND HER RECORDS that they faxed to vet #2 the night
before.
(i told them why don;t you call them up and have them faxed back??!!)

waited 30 mins while they got that together and finally got into a room
and did the blood and urine tests and waited another 30 mins. she came
back smiling and said everything was in the normal range, but there was
something in the urine they wanted to check in a week.

they waived the office charges because of the fauxpas but charged me
$132 for the tests.

i showed the tests to phil (here online) and he had noticed that they
wrote that the sample was "extremely hemolyzed" (due do poor sample
handling?) and so this means that the tests coudn't be considered
accurate. he also told me to ask them why her white blood cell count
was so low (low/normal range...)

at this point i decided to get a second opinion and more tests done
(since i couldn't put any faith in these.)

so i got her home again and she seemed to perk up for a couple of days.
(i managed to get her an appointment with an internist for
monday/today..)

but i had noticed that now she hadn't had a bm in 4 days and was not
eating as much. so i tried to make another appointment the next day
and they said couldn't give me one till next week.
i kept an eye on her and noticed she tried to go but couldn't and
jumped out of her box and layed on the floor and moaned a little bit
(not seemingly in pain, more like that she was bugged..)

i called my regular vet again the next day and told them that she
hadn't had a bm in 5 days now, and they gave me an appointment for
1:45pm.

i got there at 20 mins of, got in the room AND WAITED 45 MINS before
someone showed up.
a tech stuck their head in the door and asked if the dr. had come
though here. i said no, then 5 mins later she came back in and said
they "didn't know which room i was in/couldn't find me/looked for me in
the parking lot, etc."

wow... how feeble an excuse can people make??

the vet came in, i explained i wasn;t happy with the blood tests, she
got indignant, i said i was really concerned about her not having a bm,
she took an xray and felt her bowels and said that it didn't feel hard
and to just double up on the laxatone (that i had been giving her for a
few days) and water down her wet food. she said that she had faith in
the tests and that i shouldn't worry, but thought that she might have
the very beginnings of kidney disease and left the room.

i asked the vet tech if they could waive the office charge for the exam
and all they would do is knock $10 off for the urine sample.

got the cat home again (did i mention i'm ready to kill someone yet??)
and took her in today to the internist.

the first thing she did (and what was more striking to her than the
rest of the stuff going on) was that she said the cat didn't seem to
know where her feet were (she demonstrated this to me..)
and suggested a neruological workup along with a battery of tests that
she wanted to do just to get a clear picture of what was going on.
(this is what i wanted..)

she gave me an estimate between $1600 - $1900 just for their tests
(including bowel evacuation/enema treatment, etc.) just to try to get
to the bottom of this problem.

needles to say i was shattered. i had just spent about $400 on the cat
(the bulk of my mortgage money for may...)

i was already sobbing after she left the room after she told me about
hre not kknowing where her feet were, knowing that neurological stuff
was expensive and i had no idea that the cat was perhaps this bad off.
it just spelled doom for her..


so $1600 - $1900 just for tests, not including a visit/recommendation
to neurologist, not including any "treatment" or procedures... and all
without knowing any prognosis.

is it worth doing all this testing only to uncover some hideous
incurable disease or problem that can't be treated or even with
treatment is only going to yeild a few more months of life.

the thing is . i don't know anything yet.
can't even venture there, but i'm doing what i can.
i still need to know.

just the office exam was $150 for this place, and they are keeping her
overnight to try to evacuate her bowels. (first time we've been apart
for 16 years..)

i can't stand it.

i'm on food stamps, fuel assistance, elec. assistance, etc. and i've
got my own medical problems i'm dealing with (persistant ocular
migranes that they can't figure out, etc.) and of course, i have no
medical insurance.

i've done everything for this cat. even quite a job and stayed home
with her when she got run over 11 years ago and nursed her back to
health and even saved her leg that they all told me was going to have
to be removed.

i'm so attached to her it isn't funny.




(did i stop talking yet??)

i don't know what else to say, except i'm exhausted and have a headache
from sobbing all day.



thanks for asking though...


rb

i feel like i've been given an ultimatum.

since i can't afford the fancy testing to get to the bottom of this
my choices seem to be:

-taking her home and watching her get sicker and waste away until she
dies
-and/or make a decision to put her down when it gets to be too
painful/difficult for her.

obviously letting go is difficult. i've always said that i didn't care
if she was "just a head in a box..." i'd do anything to keep her going.


they wanted to keep her overnight.
they called later and said they got some of it out, and they are going
to keep working on it.

wanted me to think over what they told me about the tests and try to
think about what i could do
what i wanted to do, etc.

of course i want to get to the bottom and get a REAL diagnosis, but
will that only uncover a negative prognosis, or X # of months/(weeks?)
to live with expensive treatment, or what?
i don't know.

i'm tapped at this point.

no. i don't like the vets i've seen for various reasons, but i'm in a
rural area and have to take whatever i can do for her in the heat of
the moment picking the lesser of the 2 evils type of thing.

i trust these (new) guys, even though they may be a little over the top
with the testing suggestions and prices.

wish i could find some middle ground somewhere but i can't start going
from vet to vet to vet at this point to find one that can give me some
good answers so i can make some good decisions.

i'm in new hampshire.

rumble wrote:

i'm in new hampshire.

New Hampshire Spaying & Altering Service
8 Hutchins Street
Concord, NH 03301
603-224-1361 before 2 pm

New Hampshire Dept of Agriculture
APC Program
State House Annex
33 Capitol Street
Concord, NH 03301
603-271-3697

Maybe these people could give you some solid leads and probably some
sound advice.

All my best

"rumble" wrote

the first thing she did (and what was more striking to her than the
rest of the stuff going on) was that she said the cat didn't seem to
know where her feet were (she demonstrated this to me..)
and suggested a neruological workup along with a battery of tests that
she wanted to do just to get a clear picture of what was going on.
(this is what i wanted..)

she gave me an estimate between $1600 - $1900 just for their tests
(including bowel evacuation/enema treatment, etc.) just to try to get
to the bottom of this problem.

needles to say i was shattered. i had just spent about $400 on the cat
(the bulk of my mortgage money for may...)

[..]

i don't know what else to say, except i'm exhausted and have a headache
from sobbing all day.


I am so sorry you have had to go through this.

Where are you?

It seems to me that you might benefit from taking a day and
trying to get yourself grounded and really think clearly.

None of your vets sound like anyone I would go back to.

Can you opt for just having the enema done, for starters?



*** Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com ***

"rumble" wrote:
wanted me to think over what they told me about the tests and try to
think about what i could do
what i wanted to do, etc.


I would have them to the enema and take her home and do some
more research. She is in no immediate danger, that you know of, is
she?
of course i want to get to the bottom and get a REAL diagnosis, but
will that only uncover a negative prognosis, or X # of months/(weeks?)
to live with expensive treatment, or what?
i don't know.

i'm tapped at this point.

no. i don't like the vets i've seen for various reasons, but i'm in a
rural area and have to take whatever i can do for her in the heat of
the moment picking the lesser of the 2 evils type of thing.

i trust these (new) guys, even though they may be a little over the top
with the testing suggestions and prices.

wish i could find some middle ground somewhere but i can't start going
from vet to vet to vet at this point to find one that can give me some
good answers so i can make some good decisions.

i'm in new hampshire.




*** Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com ***

Why don't you first rule out hyperthyroidism and kidney failure/disease
and go from there? These tests should be that expensive and you can
treat these problems more easily. Also give your cat something to keep
it from getting constipated - Temptations hairball treats work well.

rumble wrote:

wish i could find some middle ground somewhere but i can't start going
from vet to vet to vet at this point to find one that can give me some
good answers so i can make some good decisions.

i'm in new hampshire.


can't you just go buy an enema and give her a squirt?

Im real sorry bout your cat, but you can't afford testing and testing
is not going to add anything to your cats life, it may uncover
something, but we already know the problem, she is getting old. I know
that sounds mean, but it's just true.

I would just keep her at home, keep her bones warm...

Let nature have it's course.

and YOU driving 90 mph, you know if you had hit someone and killed
them, you'd get involuntary manslaughter... you'd goto a federal prison
for a while. Not to mention the sorrow you would live with for the rest
of your life. you coulda lost everything you've been working for.

and neither would I spend mortgage money on my pet.
I bet you have worked your tail off to have a home.

I dare you to give your house to the vet specialist!
has nothing to do with wether or not a cat is worth the cost
of course they are, but that's not expendable income you have.

If you don't have a house than niether does your pet.

take her outside where it's warm, or set her over in the bath tub and
give her a cat size enema... what about 8 ounces? plus your already
giving her x-lax right?

and I would be careful about the laxitives, they dehyrdate

At this point I would be looking for a specific natural food that will
shoot through her
like a shoney's breakfast bar food... whew

but if she's impacted, it's not really going to shoot through her, I
bet the meds have compounded her natural problem.

what about some castor oil
something that will really grease her pipes
==================================
then twist up a joint and shotgun her a big hit...
==================================

~

when she wakes up, she will eat the refridgerator door off then as a
result she will spray crap all over the wall around the litter box,
she's going to need a bath afterwards wash that nasty ass

I would also donate the dry food to the birds

hi buddy..

it's hard to know which way to go.

my plan is to get more stringent /better blood work done.

however, it "may" be that this possible neurological problem is causing
the constipation, making her bowels not work (i don't know/can't say,
but that was offered as a possible cause).

she might have a brain tumor causing her not to know where her feet are
and affecting other parts of her nervous system, etc.

so where do i start?
blood work or neuro workup (which could probably be prohibitively
expensive.)
would the blood work reveal anything cancerous? .... i don't know...

where do i put the little money i have where it will do the most
good/give me the most answers?

i guess if they can rule out hyperthyroidism and kidney failure, then
that would be 2 things i wouldn't have to worry about.

thanks