The Unexpected Financial and Emotional Toll of My Child’s Sick Cat

Last night, I picked my kids up, and we were going to practice their driving skills as they have their beginner’s licenses. 

Well, the weather was bad, so I decided we would go for a ride instead.

When I dropped them off, my youngest son called me and mentioned his brother’s cat seemed to be in pain. 

He had a hard time standing up and would meow then fall over. 

This was around 10 PM, so not much we could do at that time unless it was a real emergency. This could wait until morning, so that’s what we decided.

Checking in on Newt

I gave my oldest son a call around 11 AM and asked him how the cat was doing. 

He had to wake up and go check on him. 

He mentioned he was about the same and seemed to be limping around and in pain.

I decided I should call the vet. My sister recommended a vet that other teachers use at her school. 

So, I called the vet, made an appointment for noon, and asked about the cost, which was $86.

The Vet

We arrived at the vet and entered a room, but not before I had the chance to pet a very cute dog.

The vet came in with a student vet, and he examined Newt. He was hissing as they examined his left leg, but he also had some issues with the other leg.

They recommended they take 3 X-rays, 2 of his knees and 1 of his hips. 

He would need to be put under sedation for this, so I asked how much. Around $350 for the X-rays.

I did not know at the time there was also a hefty charge for the sedation.

In any case, I would have it done. 

I tried to get a cost estimate, but the doctor mentioned it really depended on the X-rays. 

If it was a torn or strained ligament or ACL (yes, cats have those too), then it would be cheaper than, say, a broken bone that a surgeon had to fix.

Returning to the Vet

We left for about 3 hours before we had to return and get the news on his cat. 

I was a little nervous due to the money aspect, and my son was nervous due to the actual cat. 

Turns out it was a tear in the knee area on both sides, but the left was much worse.

We got 2 medications for him, and one of them is a sedative to keep him stoned for 2 weeks as he can’t be jumping around.

He is keeping the cat in his bedroom and will block off the areas that he might jump on. 

The total cost of the visit…$672.

Thanks for reading :)