05/15/2026
UPDATE: 05/19/2026 - Thank you to everyone that donated. We already had another emergency call with Styx becoming frantic, not being able to p*e or p**p, just hours after I posted the original post below on the 15th. Irene called Dr Vaughn and he came to drain the tumor. We were able to pay him thanks to your donations.
The Gaithersburg vet feels Styx has a mass in his stomach. I believe this is separate from the white pellet filled growth from his behind, but I'm not quite sure. Maybe it all stems from the same mass. She feels Palatine care is best until Styx tells us it's time. Right now, as long as the fluid is drained regularly, he's his happy and crazy self.
Remember Karma didn't have a great prognosis either. Annapolis said they wouldn't be able to remove her entire tumor. But they were wrong and were able to remove it. Two plus years later, and she's still doing well. We feel we should at least get a consult from them for Styx. Irene already has a call into them about it.
Dr Vaughn's bill, although very reasonable at less than $300 (maybe $275), did use most of what was donated. That, along with a consult visit with Annapolis means we still need more funds. If you're able, please please help. And please share.
LONG POST, BUT PLEASE READ.
I'm not sure where to even start, but we have a dire situation with Styx. It's been going on for months now. We just haven't posted anything. Irene discovered 2 growths, one on his side and one on his behind (talk about Deja Vu with Karma). Surgery was scheduled back at the middle of March to remove both. The growth on his side was a mast cell and was removed (grade 2 with clean margins). The one on his behind, they couldn't tell us what it was. It also wasn't removed like was intended. There was too much of a risk, and I can't remember what that risk was now. Maybe hemorrhage? Irene Bain can you clarify?
They did lance it, which revealed red tinged fluid and small white pellets, and they put a drain in. The first picture shows the constant blood that dripped from him for quite some time.
We opted not to have a biopsy done due to cost. We hadn't posted for donations so we were using what funds we could and the rest went on the credit card. A biopsy would have been $400 more. Maybe we should have posted, I don't know. Our posts don't seem to be reaching many of you and the donation posts we do put up have resulted in very little for a long time now. And we're grateful for the little we do get, for every single cent. But I already had a post up asking for donations just to cover food, meds, and litter, so it seemed pointless to do another.
We did decide to have an ultrasound done last Saturday. We felt we no longer had a choice. Based on the results, the vet feels it's cancer; could be hemangiosarcoma or another type. But we honestly don't know what to think about this vet practice. They haven't been very helpful. It's like they've written him off already. They said he's severely anemic, yet didn't offer any meds for it. They couldn't remove this tumor, yet never prescribed prednisone for the inflammation. Irene can't even get them to return her calls! And Dr Vaughn (home vet) said Styx's anemia certainly wasn't severe, as they stated.
Since the surgery, this thing is of course growing. Styx has had trouble going to the bathroom a few times and had to be taken in to have the tumor drained. The last time was this past Sunday, and Irene had to go to an entirely different vet, as the regular vet was closed, and the ER said they wouldn't touch him. She ended up in Gaithersburg, I believe. They were super helpful and were able to drain the tumor (pictures attached). They said Styx should have been prescribed prednisone long ago. And I agree that he absolutely should have.They prescribed it for him and he's been a happy boy ever since. But the tumor will fill back up again. The Gaithersburg vet didn't feel that Styx was being given very good care at his normal vet. Obviously, we've been questioning that ourselves. Even if they're right and this is cancer, he deserves to be given meds and supportive care to keep it at bay for as long as possible. He still has a very high quality of life. He's acting perfectly normal. We don't know what to think about their theory that the ultrasound indicates cancer. We don't know what to do next, other than stop using this vet. Do they really want us to sit back, do nothing, and just watch him die? Or just euthanize him now? Maybe there isn't anything else that can be done. But what if there is?
Should we look into having the tumor removed? Could we even pay for it if it can be removed? We have less than $200 in cash and the limit on the credit card has climbed significantly with paying for the March surgery, the ultrasound, and all the visits to drain the tumor. Our heads are spinning, especially Irene's. She's watched it unfold from the beginning and continues to live it everyday. Please feel free to give us your input, thoughts, opinions, maybe experience with something like this. Because we need help.
Also, we've held out as long as we can without asking for donations for Styx, but we need them desperately now. Dr Vaughn has agreed to come to the house to drain the tumor if it's needed. That's at least peace of mind, especially if it becomes emergent on the weekends again like last week. But we can't use the credit card to pay Dr Vaughn. He doesn't take credit cards. We need cash. Please help, please share, please help get this post seen.
paypal.me/theboxertransfernet
https://venmo.com/code?user_id=3621522983880082454&created=1736900431
Zelle: [email protected]
