Marco is a big cat with an even bigger personality.

At the age of five weeks old, weighing 1.8 pounds, Marco lost a foot from a weed eater accident. That is when he first met Dr. Dillard. From the time Marco was five weeks old, Dr. Dillard has been his veterinarian.

Before he turned five years old, Marco, the cat, weighed a whopping 27 pounds.  His owners tried many different kinds of diet cat food, but nothing worked. He was even put on food for diabetic cats, even though he was not diabetic.  It’s called the Catkins Diet.

On August 25, 2014, Marco came to Dr. Dillard’s office because he could no longer use his back legs. He looked paralyzed. His back legs splayed out, completely extended, to the sides of his body.  An x-ray revealed a tiny skeleton, Marco should be an 8 or 9 pound cat – max.  Marco could feel and move his legs slightly, so, he had a chance.

His left, rear leg; having no foot, obviously cannot support his weight and the other leg had simply given out.  At seven years old, weighing 27.2 pounds, Marco was in danger of being euthanized, due to obesity.

Marco’s owners love him very much. An enormous amount of intensive care would be needed to take care of Marco and that included possibly two major surgeries. The owners are a retired couple. When they were told the financial cost, with tears in his eyes, Marco’s dad said it would drain all their savings to go forward.  They were still going to do it.

Dr. Dillard gave them another option. Surrender Marco to her custody, and she would pay all the upfront costs for his care if she could make him a spokesmodel for feline weight-loss.

You can make history by helping Marco receive a titanium foot

The cost of implanting a titanium foot is just over $12,500. Dr. Dillard needs your help and has set up a crowdfunding page to offset the cost of the surgery.

If the procedure is successful, Marco will be the first cat in North America to receive a titanium foot.

In preparation for the procedure, Marco underwent colon surgery and physiotherapy in order to lose weight. During his colon surgery, a half-pound of feces was removed.

Marco can now use the litterbox, walk, and occasionally, even jog through Dillard Animal Clinic.  He places weight on his leg stump, which throws his pelvis, spine, and the muscles of his hips, back and pelvis out of alignment.

The titanium foot will be implanted into Marco’s existing bone and heal to become a permanent part of his body.

The titanium foot has to be engineered for him. He will need several specialists appointments, as well as the cost of a board certified surgeon to implant his bionic foot.

Again, I repeat, if the procedure is successful, Marco will be the first cat in North America to receive a titanium foot.

Dr. Dillard has based her surgical approach to Marco on the case of Oscar, the Bionic Cat after pioneering surgery gave him prosthetic back paws.

How can you help Marco?

You can help support Marco by donating to his crowdfunding campaign to help him become bionic with a titanium foot.

“This is not a prosthetic leg that will strap on and off,” Dr. Dillard told CTV London. “This will actually grow right into his bone, his skin and hair will grow right around it and it will be a permanent part of his body.”

Please help Marco receive his titanium foot and allow him to become the spokesmodel for feline weight-loss!

Not only have I have personally donated, but Dr. Dillard is my fur-baby veterinarian. The compassion and care Dillard Animal Hospital staff has provided to me and my cat is unlike any other veterinarian.

I’ve met Marco the cat in the person. He really is an adorable cat with an amazing personality. He deserves to have his titanium foot so he can enjoy life like other cats. Without it, he could easily wear out his stump as it doesn’t have a pad paw and not be able to move at all.

Please donate and help Marco today!

For more info:

News story from CTV News

Marco’s Facebook Page

Donations can be made here