"You saved my best friend."

Randall, a RedRover Relief recipient, shares his story

I was in a really bad situation in terms of my health, personal finances and emotional state leading up to Professor’s accident. As I sat outside pondering the state of my life (laid off from work, lost my house, broke my foot), I heard a passing Jeep hit something. Nearly half an hour later I heard yowling, and my Professor (my feline friend) limped to me and collapsed at my feet. I hadn’t even known that he had gotten outside.

While I examined Professor, he looked into my eyes, meowed, and heaved himself onto his other side to show me his limp paw. I ran inside immediately to get my partner, who is admittedly a bit more experienced at handling animals, especially injured animals.

When we got back, Professor was gone. On a broken foot, I walked the block over and over again for six hours calling out to Professor. Then I gave up hope.

My partner found him 17 hours after he was injured lying beneath our RV. He had a broken pelvis in two places and needed surgery. We had nothing. No money. No way of obtaining money. We thought he was going to be euthanized.

To understand how I felt, I need to explain to you that Professor is basically a service cat. I have multiple sclerosis and severe depression. He has saved me from myself more times than I can count. I work from home, and he is always by my side with affection and distraction when I need it most.

In short, I owed Professor so much more than I could give.

Surgery came to around $700. I contacted everyone, from friends and family to organizations. I heard back from almost nobody. Another organization agreed to cover part of the bill, lowering the cost to $260. We had negative funds in our bank account. We were hopeless. Professor was going to be lost.

Then RedRover stepped in. Like a guardian angel who knew we were at a crossroads, RedRover contacted us the day before the scheduled surgery with a RedRover Relief Urgent Care grant.

I cannot thank RedRover enough. Professor is going to be okay now. I have never felt such immense gratitude. You not only saved my cat; you saved my best friend and work buddy. You saved one of the most valuable things in my life.

You probably saved me.

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