Catherine launches fundraiser to keep Billy the cat alive

A MACROOM woman has resorted to launching a GoFundMe appeal to try and pay the vets’ fees for her beloved cat.

Catherine McNally adopted Billy as an abandoned six-week-old kitten a year-and-a-half ago, and said the family wouldn’t be without him now.

‘He’s the rascal of the house and our daily dose of entertainment,’ she said.

Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with heart disease early this year, showing an extremely large clot inside one of the heart chambers, for which he gets daily medication.

However, he recently went missing for nearly two days, and his condition deteriorated.

‘Somehow he managed to get himself nearly home with the use of merely his front legs. As a result of some of the clot breaking off and travelling to the hind limbs junction, he was struck with feline aortic thromboembolism (Fate) causing paralysis in both hind legs and tail. He was hospitalised for a week and we have seen very slow improvements.

From no feeling or heat in both legs and tail, to getting the feeling back, and warmth and blood supplies moving again, all within one week. At present he is still unable to stand or walk without dragging his hind legs, and needs a lot of care and monitoring,’ said a concerned Catherine.

His vets’ bill currently stands at €600 and the cost for the medication for roughly the next 10 weeks is substantially more, which is why Catherine launched the fundraiser with a target of €1,000.

‘I am devastated to say the least, but cannot give up on him especially after he clearly showed he is not willing to give up on himself – by dragging himself over hill and dale to get back to us. I want to avoid the only other alternative, which is euthanasia,’ she said.

Catherine also wants to raise awareness of the condition by putting his story out there.

‘I am hoping that the animal lovers of Cork will help me to help Billy, as medical episodes like this could be the reason why other cats have gone missing. So please get your cat checked out if they are showing any signs of not being their usual self.’

To help Catherine, search for The Fate of Billy on gofundme.com.