9/14/2024-- NESTLE UPDATE: ENDLESS thanks for your patience! I was teaching abroad and catching up on numerous things (including taking my first-born to NYC for college!!!!!!), BUT I now want to update you on our sweet Nestle's progress. Thanks to YOU and your generous help, this miracle boy is getting better every day and we are SO blessed with his presence in our lives. NESTLE is now on INSTAGRAM (thanks to Hana!) so you can follow him here: https://www.instagram.com/nestle.the.cow.cat/ I now have thank you STICKERS for all "Nestle's Angels". Please fill out this form if you are interested: https://forms.gle/hDcxHGLJHjkmqTN97 Here are some of the highlights from the last 4 weeks: On August 12th Nestle underwent surgery to remove the wires that were holding his chin and jaw in place (see photos, below). This freed him up to eat and drink more easily and the doctor told us his teeth are now perfectly aligned. The injury had caused a huge split and asymmetry so this is the best result possible for him! He had such great surgeons. His leg continues to heal and we will have a series of X-rays at the end of the month to see where we are at. Admittedly, he struggles a bit, but is now walking (and PLAYING!) more like a real kitten. It is a tough balance between allowing movement to prevent atrophy, but reining his rambunctious nature so he doesn't slow down the healing. He can overdue it and get tired, like this video shows: https://youtube.com/shorts/mFeuJgNydvw?feature=share We call him 'kickstand boy' because his injured leg sticks out, especially when he sits to eat or drink. I am not sure if this is permanent, but there is definitely an asymmetry. He is now a 100% indoor cat and actually has no desire to go outside! It seems he instinctively knows his limits. It's good for us, since we were worried that would be a challenge. His favorite toy BEFORE his injury and now AFTER the injury are my daughter's pony tail holders. They are scattered all over the downstairs and it is SO cute to watch him carry them like prey and play with them. I will post a video soon! While I was teaching in Scotland, Hana took care of him and sent me video updates like this almost every day: https://youtube.com/shorts/cqTwD6iFpJ4?feature=share Our expenses have surpassed 14K for his total treatment (and we haven't obtained the x-rays yet), so we are even MORE indebted to your support! I cannot believe we received 8K for this lovely animal ! He is a miracle in SO many ways, including bringing people together. We are still paying off the bills from a credit card and hope that we don't get into the interest phase (we have 6 months of no interest), so IF you know anyone who loves cats, even 1$ helps and gets us one step closer of being out of debt. He brings SUCH joy. With gratitude from ALL of Nestle's family. xoxox ----------------------- PLEASE fill out this form to receive a Nestle sticker: https://forms.gle/hDcxHGLJHjkmqTN97 NESTLE UPDATE, 8/4: Our miracle boy is getting better every day. Our visiting vet came and increased his pain meds. He is now allowed some supervised "outside the cage time" and his mood has improved dramatically. His spirit needed some freedom. He's not allowed to jump or run, but he can walk with a limp. It's good for him to move to prevent atrophy. He is a complete love bug and brings joy to all of us. Hana is especially grateful. The cutest is that when he eats or drinks he cannot fully stand up so he sticks his little injured chicken leg out: He also likes to sit on Kurt's chair next to me while I work. We are his human elevators to get him up and down. Our next phase will include removing the wires in his chin and jaw. He will need anesthesia so it's another big expense. He will also be getting X-rays to assess the pins. We are BEYOND GRATEFUL for your generous help. We are a little more than half of the total. It saved his life. We have little Nestle stickers as a thank you---please let me know your address so I can send them. THANK YOU!!!!! NESTLE UPDATE, 7/21: Our sweet boy spent 4 days in the Solano Emergency Hospital where he was treated for pneumothorax and a bruised liver. He had several lung taps to remove air and was touch and go for a while. They couldn't do anything for his orthopedic injuries until he was stabilized. Your donated funds paid the $5,028 for his care during this time and we are most grateful. It saved his life since we could not have afforded it upfront. We called around to see if any orthopedic specialists could both repair his mandible symphysis and his Salter-Harris femur fracture and dislocation, which was a more complicated surgery. After calling places within 100 miles, there was ONE surgeon available in Sacramento on the 19th. We made the hour drive and transferred him there ourselves that morning. He was operated on that same day. We put a deposit down of $7,056.18 and again, your donations helped us tremendously and literally saved his leg. He is now resting at home and we cannot believe he's on the road to recovery. He will be staying in his crate for 6-8 weeks as he heals but his personality, purrs, and spirit are all there despite his trauma. His momma, Rocky, is also glad to see him home. Our hearts are full of love and gratitude. There are still more expenses to come after the $12,084.18 we've already paid with your enormous help: he will need to go under anesthesia again in 8 weeks to remove the wires from his jaw and take follow-up x-rays on his leg. He is also on many medications we are monitoring. The estimate was brought up to $14,000. We know this is a lot to invest in a cat. But truly he is a member of the family and that is invaluable. Witnessing the goodness in the world, the kindness of friends, and how animals bring humans together is a lesson for us all. We share so much in common. We promise to pay it forward. Thank you. -------------------------- Our one-year-old kitten--born from one of the 2 abandoned foster cats we care for--was tragically hit by a car on July 16th, 2024. Left for dead on the side of the road, my husband Kurt found him bleeding, dazed, and barely breathing. We were grateful to live near the Solano County Pet Emergency Room where he was diagnosed with a broken mandible, femur, pneumothorax (which has been causing repeated breathing issues and necessitating multiple procedures), and bruised liver. Last night, his lungs were tapped twice and he is now in a kennel with supplementary oxygen. When he is stable, he must undergo several surgical procedures, including specialized orthopedic care when he is finally released from the hospital. We had to pay the ER $1000 before they would see him and then hold an additional $3800 for the procedures they anticipated having to do over the next 36 hours, resulting in $4800 from this emergency visit alone. We are now researching for doctors who specialize in severe femoral Salter-Harris fractures. The least expensive option for his surgery was quoted at $8000-$10000 on top of the $4800 we already paid for his ongoing emergency care. There is also an option for a less-expensive amputation, but that means more challenges in the future. Admittedly, given the cost, we contemplated putting him down. But Nestle is such an important part of our family, especially for our daughter Hana, we decided to go through with his treatment. His pain is well-managed and he is a tough boy. His momma, Rocky, also misses him tremendously... It feels strange to ask for help for our pet, but financially things haven't been easy in the arts. We do not expect this LFEBridge to cover all of the costs, but any amount will help us give Nestle the care he deserves and keep him in the family for a long time. If it's any consolation, we have also donated to pets that aren't our own: we currently care for our neighbors' cats, including paying for their spays and vaccinations, and took care of their kittens (Nestle was actually one birthed from a litter left in our garden) so we have given to animals not our own and have always valued that gift. So we now ask for yours. Many many thanks and love. Hug your fur babies.
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