Yahoo News Essex couple's 'bravest and most expensive cat' survives dog attack and COVID, costing £25,000 in vet bills
A couple from Dovercourt, Essex, have hailed their cat as "the bravest and most expensive cat in the UK" after it survived an attack by four dogs and overcame coronavirus. With the medical costs escalating to an eye-watering £25,000, it resulted in the cancellation of their summer holiday.
Yoga instructor Katie Courts, 47, and her husband Paul Giller, 51, a computer programmer, experienced every pet owner's nightmare on May 6 2024, when their beloved ragdoll cat Billie was savagely attacked right outside their home by what they described as "bullies" resembling off-lead dogs.
In a desperate attempt to protect Billie, Paul scooped him up, but the frightened feline struggled free only to be bitten on the head by one of the dogs, which caused horrific injuries including a nearly severed tongue and crushed jaws. After an agonising three-week stay at a specialist animal hospital, where Billie fought for his life against sepsis and anaemia, he was finally released.
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The ordeal left Katie and Paul facing a staggering £14,000 vet bill, thankfully halved by their insurance. The family, including children Myla, 10, and Aidan, six, are now grappling with an additional £6,000 in veterinary fees after Billie, in a moment of discomfort, removed his cone collar and injured his leg, which might now need amputation.
Determined to do everything for Billie, Katie and Paul have dipped into their savings, making the tough decision to forego their planned trip to Ohio, America, as they can neither afford the journey nor bear the thought of leaving Billie during his recovery. Billie, the cat, is no stranger to using up his nine lives. A few years ago, he survived a usually fatal feline Covid after Paul shelled out £4,000 for a trial treatment.
The couple have revealed that they've spent a whopping £25,000 on Billie's vet bills in total. "Basically, all our savings are now gone and we've just had to cancel our holiday to America in a couple of weeks," Katie, who also has a pet cockapoo named Sula and another cat called Lillie, told PA Real Life.
"Billie is the bravest and most expensive cat. I can't believe he survived everything life has thrown at him and as long as he wants to live we will keep finding the funding." "If you have a dog that can cause damage to any other living creature, whether it's a cat, human or another dog, they should just be on a leash and under control at all times."
When Katie and Paul adopted Billie four and half years ago, they were residing in a 600 year old farmhouse surrounded by fields in Wrabness, Essex. They noticed that Billie "behaved more like a dog", accompanying them on country walks during lockdown.
"It was just something he always did, he would come with us and trot at our heels around the fields, almost like he thought he was a dog, it was so sweet," Katie shared. In May 2021, the couple relocated to Dovercourt on the coast, where Billie quickly became a local celebrity due to his unusual habit of joining them for beach walks.
"People would always stop us and say, 'Gosh, you taking your cat for a walk? ' and we would have a laugh about it, everyone loved him," Katie shared. On the morning of May 6, Paul went out for his usual stroll, with Billie faithfully following behind.
Their peaceful routine was disrupted when they barely made it past their garden gate before a woman appeared with four unleashed dogs, which Paul described as "bullies". Reacting instinctively, Paul scooped up Billie to shield him a decision he now regrets.
"All the dogs rushed up and started jumping up at Paul and scratching him to try and get at Billie," Katie recounted. "Of course, Billie was going mad and scratching Paul too, and he ended up with gashes down his face and all over his arms."
Paul attempted to walk away and defuse the situation, but in the chaos, Billie managed to break free and jumped onto the ground. "My husband dived in and saw the jaws of the biggest dog just close around Billie's head and at that point he thought Billie was lost," she added.
In what Katie describes as a "miracle", the dog released its grip and Paul was able to scoop up Billie and rush back into the house. Katie immediately took Billie to an emergency vet in Colchester, where they were warned he might not survive the night.
The next morning, Billie was transferred to the DWR Veterinary Specialists in Newmarket, a two-hour drive away, where he spent the next three weeks. Katie, the owner of Billie, expressed her gratitude towards the dental team and ICU nurses who worked under the guidance of surgeon Gerrard Putter. She said: "The dental team, under the leadership of surgeon Gerrard Putter, and the ICU nurses worked tirelessly to save his life and literally performed miracles on his mouth,".
She revealed that the total cost for the three weeks of treatment, including the first night of emergency care, was £15,000, with their insurance covering only the first seven days. A CT scan showed that Billie's tongue had almost been completely severed at the root and both sides of his jaws were "completely crushed".
Billie underwent two surgeries - one to re-attach his tongue and another to wire his jaws back together. However, he developed sepsis from an untreated wound on his leg, which was hidden beneath his fur. Katie was advised to "say her goodbyes", but after receiving a blood transfusion, Billie made a remarkable recovery and was able to return home a week later.
His recovery seemed to be progressing well until one evening when Katie and Paul had retired for the night, Billie managed to remove his protective cone and began gnawing at his wounded leg. "By the next morning, he had chewed through the ligaments of his leg," Katie shared.
On Wednesday, the couple will find out if vets can perform surgery or if amputation of Billie's leg is necessary. The procedure would cost an additional £6,000, a sum that Katie and Paul cannot afford. In an effort to raise funds, Katie has started a GoFundMe campaign, asking people to sponsor her as she completes 108 sun salutations a popular yoga sequence.
However, this isn't the first time that Billie has used up one of his nine lives. After relocating to Dovercourt, Katie and Paul noticed that their cat Billie became "very quiet and lost weight", prompting a visit to the vet. Billie was diagnosed with feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), a rare but severe disease caused by feline coronavirus, as explained by the PDSA.
"I was told that it's quite common in breed cats under two years old and it was always fatal," Katie shared. "He was put in an oxygen tent and (it was) basically said, we can drain his lungs but we can't cure this." She added, "I was obviously devastated."
Refusing to lose hope, Paul discovered that the University of Edinburgh was testing a treatment called Remdesivir, previously used for Covid in humans. Their vet contacted the university, which agreed to administer the treatment to Billie, involving a daily injection for three months.
"Three months later he had beaten it," Katie revealed. "He was one of the first cats in the country to do this drug and the vets gave us a little certificate." However, she also noted, "He wasn't insured at the time and that treatment cost us £4,000."
Despite overcoming his health issues, Billie was then involved in a dog attack. Katie hopes that sharing Billie's story will encourage people to keep aggressive dogs on a leash, expressing concern for her children's safety.
The couple are now waiting to find out if Billie's leg can be repaired, and have already received over £1,450 in public donations towards the operation. "I have been overwhelmed by the support," Katie expressed.
"After what happened, I was feeling quite upset about how some people can be really horrible and this GoFundMe has restored my faith in how amazing people can be." Essex Police have clarified that the attack on Billie is not a police matter, and Katie has since reported the incident to the dog warden.
To show your support for Katie and Paul, you can visit their fundraising page at: gofundme.com/f/a9psw-saving-billie.
