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The Winn Feline Foundation

Posted Sun, Mar 02, 2008, 10:05 pm PST
Cats are living longer and enjoying a better quality of life, thanks to the advances in veterinary medicine, top-quality nutrition, and an increased awareness of owners regarding feline health and behavior. There are many valuable websites on the internet that offer help and up-to-the-minute information regarding the care and health and your feline companion. Here is an important site you and your veterinarian should know about:

Winn Feline Foundation. This is a non-profit organization that offers grants and supports studies on feline health. Since its inception, Winn has awarded more than $3 million in grants.

Winn reports the findings in veterinary journals and makes this valuable information available to veterinarians to assist them in staying up-to-date on the latest in veterinary medicine.

 

You can help contribute to the amazing work of the Winn Feline Foundation by making a donation. You can specify where you'd like your donation to go, for example, to help fund ongoing research into a specific feline health issue. You can also nominate your veterinarian to be a member of the Veterinary Honor Roll. This is a wonderful way to say thank you to a veterinarian who has provided outstanding health care to your precious cat.

 

If your cat has recently succumbed to disease, consider creating a virtual memorial on the Winn site. This can be a very meaningful way to help family members through the grieving process and also contribute to the funding of health research.

Thanks to the Winn Feline Foundation, we know so much more about feline disease and health issues.

 

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6 Comments

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  • 1. Barbara D - 3:12PM on 03/03/08

    Well, I recently (January 5, 2008) had to put one of my babies to sleep, her name was Amber and she was 17 years old. I have another 17 yr old named Katie and two 5 yrs olds Shelby (boy) and Sasha. I have one big problem about taking them to the vet. I used to be able to afford to take them to the doctor for everything, now I am on Disability and cannot afford to take them for anything. It cost me $105 to put Amber to sleep and they said I had to pay for it up front, I told them I couldn't do that so they said I could pay on it. I could only send them $15 a month. Well, on February 25th I had to take Sasha in because she was throwing up. She has the sensitive stomach and we go through this every so often. Well, I told them the only way I could bring her in is if they let me add it to my bill. Well, when I got there they told me that they don't do billing but they would do it this one time only and that next time I would have to pay the whole thing then. Well, they did blood work to find out why she is throwing up. I told them I didn't have the money for that but they did it anyway. That added another $142 to my bill, making my bill $232 and they wanted it paid in 3 months, but they would go 6 mos. I told them I could only pay them $15-$20 a month, well, they said I have to pay them $40 a month for 6 mos. Now we have been going to this same Vet for 30 years. I only get $1,020 a mo in disability benefits. I always took that money out of my income tax refund, but now that I am not working and not filing taxes, well, you get my drift. So I guess I won't be able to take my babies to the vet any more. I can't afford pet insurance because you have to pay the bill up front and they pay you back. So I am caught between a rock and a hard place. Wish there was something I could do because I need to keep my babies healthy.Is there a vet anywhere for poor people? unicornmagic88@sbcglobal.net 3

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  • 2. Rock - 6:19PM on 03/03/08

    I used to be in your situation till my 28 year old son moved back home to take care of his dying cat. "Blackie" even had an oncologist. We went the limit to try & save him. In Arizona we have an organization called AZCats who's main purpose is spay/neuter/& return feral cats with no euthanasia; On one spay/neuter day when I sent 3 cats I could only pay $10 each & that was fine with them because people without sending cats donate money for them and the vets volunteer their time. I'm sure someone within that organization could help you with free veternarian service. Also there's the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA)... not getting help for a suffering cat is considered cruelty... I'll be thinking about you and good luck!

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  • 3. jinxer - 10:37AM on 03/04/08

    If your veterinarian belongs to the American Animal Hospital Association you can ask him/her to submit an application to the helping pets fund. This fund was set up for those in exactly your postition. If your veterinarian is not a member of the AAHA and you would consider switching to one who is you can find a list of them at http://www.pets911.com. You can find details of the helping pets fund at the AAHA website. I too, am on disability. I have 5 cats and 3 of them are over 10. I recently switched vets to an AAHA practice just in case of a catastrophe. The veterinary bills are getting out of control. Good Luck and I hope this helps.

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  • 4. Don - 6:56AM on 03/05/08

    MEOW!

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  • 5. Barbara D - 5:22PM on 03/07/08

    I want to thank Rock and Jinxer for their comments and I am looking into it now. My vet is an AAHA accredited clinic. I mailed all the information I had to my vets office and am waiting to them to reply to me. I love my babies and want to keep them healthy.

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  • 6. Barbara D - 3:36PM on 03/10/08

    It doesn't cover routine visits and I cannot afford to take them in for their shots either. So some of this doesn't do me any good.That is why they haven't been going in for their checkups for the last 3 years, they haven't had any of their shots for the last 3 years either. I got in touch with my vet who is a AAHA Accredited Veterinary Clinic and they sent me back this information. I received your letter dated March 5th regarding the AAHA Helping Pets Fund. I called AAHA directly and spoke to Tamara regarding the fund. The following is the information I received. ? AAHA accredited veterinarians may apply for funding to support cases that meet certain client, treatment and patient eligibility criteria. ? Each AAHA hospital gets a limited amount of funds per year ($500.00) that they can access to assist clients who qualify for financial hardship. ? Pet owners receiving government assistance for low income individuals or families are eligible. ? Documentation proving current participation in one of the following government assistance programs must be submitted with a grant application o Foor Stamp Program o Unemployment Insurance o Supplemental Security Income o Temporary Assistance for Needy Families o Medicad ? Disability alone does not qualify an individual for assistance ? The Fund will grant only for needed medical (non-elective or emergency procedures) for sick or injured companion animals. ? Routine physical examinations, vaccinations etc. will not be funded ? General prophylactic dental care will not be funded ? Applications must include sufficient information to clearly determine client and treatment eligibility, including client eligibility and patient diagnosis and treatment information. ? Completed applications must be received by the Fund no later than three weeks following the start of treatment ? The Fund shall have the discretion to deny any grant application it deems inappropriate or that does not maximize benefit from the financial resources of the Fund. I hope this helps clarify how the fund works. If you are interested in apply for a portion of the Helping Pets Fund, we will need documentation as outlined above to submit with the application. Please let me know if I can be of further assistance to you. Sincerely, Nancy Shellhart Practice Manager

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