Help Sunny get Diaphragmatic Hernia Surgery — Hoboken, NJ

After several years of longing and pleading, I was finally in a position this summer to fulfill my son’s dream of owning a cat. We adopted Sunny(& her sister, Pearl) from Heart of the Catskills shelter in upstate New York. I fell in love with Sunny the moment we locked eyes, and she stuck her tiny paw through the door of her crate… I picked her up and she nuzzled into my shoulder and purred loudly; She was the one. But when we returned to pick her up the following day she lay snuggled up with her sister, licking her face and grooming here attentively, and I couldn’t bring myself to sever that bond or separate that love. We drove home with two kittens. Since that day Sunny, who is wildly affectionate, loving and nurturing even at her young age, and Pearl (the more playful and mischievous of the two) have filled our lives with more love, light and laughter than I ever imagined. They have truly become an invaluable part of our little family.

We were shattered to learn that sometime last night Sunny got onto our balcony and fell 4 floors into the courtyard of our building. We called her name when she didn’t come for breakfast, and she meowed to us incessantly from below. I rushed her to the vet in Hoboken this morning, and was devastated to hear she had a herniated diaphragm…or as the Dr described it, her diaphragm had ruptured and her stomach and other organ parts were on top of her lungs, making her breathing very labored. On top of that she had fractured both hindlegs (though that is the least of our worries now). They gave Sunny and I a portable oxygen tank and sent us to Oradell Animal Hospital in Paramus who told us it was possible to save her life but she needed Diaphragmatic Hernia surgery to survive.

Sunny has brought so much joy, love and comfort to both my son and myself, and even though she hasn’t been part of our family very long, I honestly cannot imagine our lives without her. Even her sister Pearl is missing her…she keeps looking around the apartment longingly and waiting at the door for her to return. Even though she is still a kitten herself , Sunny is so loving, affectionate and nurturing, it’s almost like she has a maternal instinct, especially with Pearl.

We are heartbroken by today’s events, but are trying to remain hopeful and optimistic for the opportunity to help Sunny make a full recovery and have our little family reunited. It won’t be an easy road, but her age is on our side and I know she’s a fighter and a survivor 🙏

I feel very conflicted about reaching out to the public for help, and never imagined I’d be in a position to have to do this, but as a self employed single mother who went through my own medical emergency earlier in the summer , the timing and magnitude of this expense leave me little choice , and I would not be able to live with myself if I didn’t do everything in my power to save Sunny’s life. On top of the $2000 for the local vet visit and initial X-rays and oxygen, and her overnight stay at the animal hospital, they have estimated her cost for surgery to be between $6866 and $13224. Due to two other major unforeseen expenses overlapping this one, the cost of the surgery is more than we can afford at this time, and any contribution- however small- will help and be deeply appreciated. Whether you can contribute or not, thank you for caring, and please say a prayer, or send a healing thought to our beloved Sunny.

Thank you so much