Cattitude

Jessica Baladad is a 5-year cancer survivor who became a passionate advocate after a practitioner dismissed a malignant lump in her breast during a clinical exam.

Thankfully, Jessica learned how to do a self breast exam after having a benign tumor removed while she was in college, and it was a routine she maintained throughout adulthood. Two weeks after her clinical appointment, Jessica was doing a self exam in the shower when she found a lump, the same lump her practitioner failed to tell her about and documented as “normal.”

Jessica was later diagnosed with Stage 2B invasive ductal carcinoma. She underwent 16 rounds of chemotherapy, a double mastectomy, 24 rounds of radiation, a hysterectomy and a 10-hour flap reconstruction.

She started Feel For Your Life as a social media outreach project to encourage women to be their breast health advocates, and in 2021, Jessica became the first breast cancer survivor to create an app that provides resources for doing self breast exams and getting screened, allows users to track and monitor their changes, and lets users set reminders for doing self exams.

Since launching the app, she’s helped write legislation in the State of Tennessee to promote risk-reducing measures against cancer and disease. Billed as the Feel For Your Life Act, it requires high school students to learn about self breast exams, testicular exams and skin exams. Additionally, Jessica has spoken before members of congress in  to eliminate PBMs, QALY scores and co-pay accumulators. These efforts will help ensure patients get better access to healthcare without the bureaucracy of insurance companies.

When Jessica isn’t advocating, she enjoys traveling and exploring new places, attending sporting events with her husband and photographing animals.

Transcript:

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Announcer: This is Pet Life Radio.

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Jessica Baladad: Let's talk pets.

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Michelle Fern: Hello, feline friends, welcome to Cattitude.

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Michelle Fern: I'm your show host, Michelle Fern.

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Michelle Fern: Today, we're gonna talk to an amazing woman who turned a tragedy into something positive for cats, and well, for all pets, but you know, Cattitude.

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Michelle Fern: So, for cats.

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Michelle Fern: And it was through a diagnosis of her cat that she made this decision.

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Michelle Fern: So stay tuned, we'll be right back.

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Michelle Fern: Hey, Michelle Fern here, and you know, saving cats is near and dear to my heart.

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Michelle Fern: Did you know that there is an estimated 70 to 100 million free roaming cats in the United States?

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Michelle Fern: And without spay neuter, that number will keep growing.

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Michelle Fern: Not only does spay neuter mainly reduce the community cat population, but it also keeps cats healthier.

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Michelle Fern: Scooter, the neutered cat, is on a mission to give cats an extra life by making it hip to be sniffed.

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Michelle Fern: Visit his website, givethemten.org, to help pioneer a better world for cats.

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Michelle Fern: That's GiveThemTen, spelled out, T-E-N, dot org.

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Announcer: Let's Talk Pets on petliferadio.com.

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Michelle Fern: Welcome back, everyone.

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Michelle Fern: I'd like to welcome Jessica Baladad.

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Michelle Fern: She is the creator of Feel For Your Life, and she is celebrating six years of survivorship from breast cancer.

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Michelle Fern: Welcome, Jessica.

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Jessica Baladad: Thank you so much for having me.

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Jessica Baladad: It's a pleasure to be here today.

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Michelle Fern: I'm so excited to have you on.

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Michelle Fern: Wow, you know, you received this diagnosis fairly early in life, you know, pretty young.

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Michelle Fern: Your diagnosis, well, let's start from the beginning.

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Michelle Fern: So, tell us a little bit about yourself.

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Jessica Baladad: Well, when I was 18 years old and a freshman in college, I accidentally stumbled upon a lump in my breast.

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Jessica Baladad: And I had it looked at and the doctor that I saw on campus said, hey, this isn't a cyst, this is a solid mass, it needs to come out.

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Jessica Baladad: And I thought, oh my God, is this cancer?

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Jessica Baladad: Well, I had it biopsied, I had a lumpectomy, they removed the lump, biopsied it, and it was a benign non-cancerous tumor called a fibroadenoma, which is something that occurs in women of menstruating ages.

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Jessica Baladad: And it was that experience that put me in the habit of performing self-exams.

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Jessica Baladad: Fast forward 15 years later, I'm 33 years old, I had been doing self-exams every month, and I came upon a lump on the left side of my left breast, and it was eventually diagnosed as breast cancer.

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Jessica Baladad: I went through 16 rounds of chemotherapy, 24 rounds of radiation.

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Jessica Baladad: I had a double mastectomy, a hysterectomy, and a 10-hour flap reconstruction, where they took fat tissue and blood vessels from my stomach and placed them into my chest to recreate my body.

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Jessica Baladad: And it was all of that experience that inspired me to create the Feel For Your Life app.

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Jessica Baladad: And that's why I'm here today.

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Jessica Baladad: It's been downloaded by tens of thousands of women all over the world to encourage them in their breast health advocacy to do self-exams.

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Jessica Baladad: And that experience turned me into an advocate for my cat who was diagnosed with small cell lymphoma just a few months ago this year.

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Michelle Fern: Wow.

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Michelle Fern: What a story.

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Michelle Fern: We're going to talk more about your cat.

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Michelle Fern: I'm so sorry to hear that.

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Michelle Fern: I applaud you for creating this app because in the US, I think what the mammogram age is 40.

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Jessica Baladad: Yes, it's recommended for women ages 40.

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Jessica Baladad: I was 33 and we know that 12,000 women under the age of 40 will be diagnosed with breast cancer every year.

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Jessica Baladad: So self-exams are often our go-to for advocating for ourselves and protecting ourselves.

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Michelle Fern: Yes.

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Michelle Fern: And I don't even want to stay in this day and age, but I implore women, because probably more women are listening to this, and I think maybe I'm biased being female, but I've had more than my fair share of doctors say, no, this is not right, this is not right.

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Michelle Fern: And a lot of us have been told, we don't question a doctor or just confront them.

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Michelle Fern: We're taught not to be confronta gous as women, which is a stereotype, but it exists.

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Michelle Fern: It is a stereotype, it's true, and especially not with doctors.

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Jessica Baladad: Oh, yeah, absolutely.

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Jessica Baladad: I know when I was first diagnosed, it took me four months to get a diagnosis, a proper diagnosis, because I had just seen my doctor for my well woman's exam.

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Jessica Baladad: And she did a clinical exam of my breast and found the lump and didn't tell me about it because she thought I was too young.

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Jessica Baladad: So when I found it doing a self exam, I thought, well, I guess I'm okay because surely she would have told me about this.

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Jessica Baladad: But, you know, it wasn't going away.

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Jessica Baladad: It was causing me issues.

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Jessica Baladad: And thankfully, I advocated for a screening and eventually got one and got a proper diagnosis.

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Michelle Fern: Well, thank goodness for that.

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Michelle Fern: Let's talk briefly about your app.

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Michelle Fern: What is the app about?

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Michelle Fern: I mean, I know it's about self exams, but it's Feel For Your Life, but it talks about more than that in your app.

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Jessica Baladad: Sure.

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Michelle Fern: We're going to talk more about your cat for the second half of the show.

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Jessica Baladad: Yeah, so Feel For Your Life, it shows you how to perform self exams, lets you track and monitor your progress and set monthly reminders.

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Jessica Baladad: And there's also an AI tool on the inside of it, where if you get a mammogram, an ultrasound, maybe you have surgery or even lab work, you can copy and paste your results from your online portal into the app.

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Jessica Baladad: And what it'll do is translate them into terms that you understand.

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Jessica Baladad: So you understand your diagnosis, you understand your body, and it will also give you questions to ask your medical provider.

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Jessica Baladad: Because sometimes when we're at these doctor's appointments, we don't know what to do or what to ask, and we think of them after the fact.

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Jessica Baladad: But Feel For Your Life will show you what to do in that moment.

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Michelle Fern: It's a great app.

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Michelle Fern: I've downloaded it and very informative.

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Michelle Fern: And I highly recommend it.

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Michelle Fern: Again, it's called Feel For Your Life.

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Michelle Fern: Now, let's talk about your cat.

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Michelle Fern: So you've gone through all of this chemo, radiation, surgeries to reconstruct your body.

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Michelle Fern: You're doing okay, and then you receive your cat's diagnosis.

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Michelle Fern: How did you know something was wrong with your cat?

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Jessica Baladad: So he had just gone for blood work earlier this year as part of his routine checkup.

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Jessica Baladad: Everything came back okay, and that was in early this year, I want to say around the end of February.

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Jessica Baladad: Well, as it got warmer, it's time to start mowing the grass.

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Jessica Baladad: My husband mowed the grass.

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Jessica Baladad: It's part of my husband and my cat's routine.

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Jessica Baladad: He'll bring in a blade of grass for our cat because he just loves the smells of outside.

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Jessica Baladad: My cat, his name is Shooter, he ate the piece of grass, and a couple hours later, he threw up, which is kind of typical.

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Jessica Baladad: We understand it, hairballs and whatnot have to come up.

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Jessica Baladad: It's probably why he wanted to eat the grass.

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Jessica Baladad: Well, he threw up four or five times within a 24 hour period, and that wasn't normal.

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Jessica Baladad: And I was concerned about his potassium levels and his hydration, and I thought, okay, this can't be good for his kidneys.

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Jessica Baladad: He's probably, you know, it can't be good for his heart either, so let's get this looked at.

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Jessica Baladad: And I mean, it was two o'clock in the morning, we have an emergency vet down the road from our house, and we went there and I expected them, you know, they'll probably give him fluids, probably give him something to control the nausea, and what not, but they did imaging on him after his blood results came back a little bit wonky, and they found a thickening around his heart and a thickening around his intestines.

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Jessica Baladad: And the intestinal thickening is what they were the most concerned with.

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Jessica Baladad: And that turned into seeing an internalist who did a biopsy and confirmed that he had small cell lymphoma.

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Jessica Baladad: And you know, I'm just grateful that my cat was able to demonstrate some sort of symptom that prompted us to go to the doctor because cats are notorious for hiding the way they actually feel and how they're actually doing.

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Jessica Baladad: And so I'm grateful for that moment.

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Jessica Baladad: Yeah, but it was scary, but thankfully, it was caught pretty early.

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Jessica Baladad: It's early stage.

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Jessica Baladad: It's not very aggressive.

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Jessica Baladad: We also looked at the thickening around his heart, and we found that he had hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

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Jessica Baladad: It's very, very mild.

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Jessica Baladad: They're not even treating it because it's so mild, but they are keeping an eye on it.

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Jessica Baladad: So I'm just grateful that my cat showed some symptoms that prompted us to get him to help because, like I said, cats don't always show when something's wrong with them.

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Michelle Fern: Right.

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Michelle Fern: We've talked a lot about that on Cattitude, that cats are such stoic creatures, and they'll hide what's going on, and you really have to be almost a detective.

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Jessica Baladad: Absolutely.

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Jessica Baladad: Yeah.

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Michelle Fern: To find anything out.

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Michelle Fern: That's why exams, annual exams are so important and paying attention to their habits are so important as well.

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Jessica Baladad: Absolutely.

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Michelle Fern: So you're treating your cat with chemotherapy.

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Michelle Fern: You're administering it?

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Jessica Baladad: Yes.

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Jessica Baladad: He gets treatment three days a week.

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Jessica Baladad: And because of the chemotherapy that I've been through, I can't let myself be exposed to it.

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Jessica Baladad: I've been informed that it can be transdermal.

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Jessica Baladad: And so I have to wear gloves and take care of myself to make sure that it doesn't get into my skin or anything.

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Jessica Baladad: So I wear gloves.

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Jessica Baladad: He takes it three days a week.

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Jessica Baladad: And just protecting myself and everything.

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Jessica Baladad: I have to be careful when I clean the litter box.

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Jessica Baladad: So I got to get my husband's help on that, but he doesn't mind.

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Jessica Baladad: And so yeah, that's something that we have to take care of.

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Jessica Baladad: And he's also on, I call it kitty prednisone, but it's a steroid that makes him so hungry all the time.

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Jessica Baladad: And he runs around the house all day, all night.

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Jessica Baladad: He's got so much energy.

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Jessica Baladad: You would not know my cat has cancer based on the way that he's acting right now.

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Michelle Fern: And what is the prognosis?

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Michelle Fern: I mean, you have to wait for the chemo, but since it was caught early, the prognosis is pretty good.

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Jessica Baladad: Yeah.

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Jessica Baladad: Yeah.

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Jessica Baladad: He's got a good prognosis overall.

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Jessica Baladad: All this medical stuff, the terminology, it is so much for someone to keep up with.

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Jessica Baladad: Yeah.

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Jessica Baladad: So his prognosis is looking good.

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Jessica Baladad: He will probably be on this for the rest of his life, primarily because he's a 15 year old cat and it's possible something else could happen between now and the rest of his life that isn't contributed to the cancer itself.

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Jessica Baladad: So when I take him for checkups, we go quarterly right now, every three to four months, we get labs, we get chemistry work done on him.

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Jessica Baladad: I'll ask for a urolysis and extensive tests on his urine as well, just to check his kidney levels, liver, stuff like that.

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Michelle Fern: All right, we're gonna take our midway break a little bit earlier this time, because we're gonna talk a lot about some other things that you're working on that are so important, which is as an advocate for pet health insurance and for financial plans for your cats.

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Michelle Fern: So we'll be right back.

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Announcer: Let's talk pets.

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Announcer: On Pet Life Radio.

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Announcer: petliferadio.com.

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Michelle Fern: Welcome back, everyone.

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Michelle Fern: We're talking to Jessica Baladad.

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Michelle Fern: She is the creator of Feel For Your Life, which is an app for women to check the girls once a month.

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Michelle Fern: And this half of the show, we talked about your diagnosis, and I'm so glad you're in remission, you're taking care of your cat.

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Michelle Fern: And since then, you've become such an advocate for pet insurance, and also so that pet parents consider the financial burden of their pet's health.

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Michelle Fern: So, tell us about that.

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Jessica Baladad: So, whenever you get a cat or a dog, you have to think about the financial responsibility.

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Jessica Baladad: And I know people hear that, and they just kind of roll their eyes and like, yeah, yeah, I'm gonna take my pet to the vet.

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Jessica Baladad: But pets have genetic issues that show up, you know, not always early.

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Jessica Baladad: It could be in their midlife or later in life.

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Jessica Baladad: And when you have pet insurance, the way that it generally works is you don't really have a deductible that you have to meet most of the time.

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Jessica Baladad: In my experience, it's you go to the vet, if they don't have a pre-existing condition, you pay for it upfront, and then you submit for reimbursement.

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Jessica Baladad: And I think just having that safety, because I mean, cats in the young age and the older age, cats at young ages, you know, they're exploring things with their mouths or getting into things.

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Jessica Baladad: You're trying to figure out what are they allergic to potentially, what could poison them or harm them.

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Jessica Baladad: Cats are so unpredictable with their behavior.

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Jessica Baladad: Dogs are a little bit easier to train, but again, they chew on things and do things that are often unpredictable too.

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Jessica Baladad: You never know what's gonna happen.

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Jessica Baladad: And this is a companion, someone you're bringing on into your family, that you wanna be part of your family for as long as you possibly can.

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Jessica Baladad: I mean, they can't live forever and humans most often live longer than their pets, but they're part of your family and you wanna protect them and they're an investment.

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Jessica Baladad: Well, they're not really an investment.

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Michelle Fern: Well, kind of, they're an investment in joy, in your life.

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Jessica Baladad: Yeah, that's true.

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Jessica Baladad: That's definitely true.

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Michelle Fern: I'm finding it's like your health is an investment too, you know?

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Jessica Baladad: Right.

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Jessica Baladad: Yeah.

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Jessica Baladad: But, you know, they have their health liabilities as well.

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Jessica Baladad: But you invest in your pet because you love them and you care about them.

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Jessica Baladad: And I think pet insurance is a great option for people who, you know, may have an animal with special needs or may have issues down the road.

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Jessica Baladad: If you protect them up front, then you know that you feel good about what you're putting into your pet.

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Michelle Fern: So let's talk about pet insurance.

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Michelle Fern: I know some companies, quite a few companies are offering it just as they offer health insurance.

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Michelle Fern: And some of the costs are, they're not that high.

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Michelle Fern: More and more veterinary offices, whether they're private practice or, you know, larger practices such as, I'm not as familiar with Chewy Vet Care because that's fairly new.

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Michelle Fern: But, you know, I know VCA has its own thing.

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Michelle Fern: But I know that a lot more places are accepting pet insurance.

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Michelle Fern: But yes, a lot of them are.

00:15:49.307 --> 00:15:58.207
Michelle Fern: Do you find that a lot of them are more of the type of insurance, you know, you pay a monthly or quarterly fee, but you pay upfront and then you're reimbursed?

00:15:58.207 --> 00:16:03.207
Jessica Baladad: Yeah, that's what I typically have worked with in the past.

00:16:03.207 --> 00:16:07.867
Jessica Baladad: Yeah, you have a little bit of a premium, which is more like a subscription, something that you pay for monthly.

00:16:07.867 --> 00:16:10.467
Jessica Baladad: And, you know, they collect fees off of that.

00:16:10.467 --> 00:16:16.827
Jessica Baladad: And that way, whenever you do have an issue, usually if it's not a preexisting condition, they'll reimburse you for it.

00:16:17.007 --> 00:16:25.247
Jessica Baladad: And, you know, read the fine print and all of that, and make sure that you understand what it is that they do and don't cover and that.

00:16:25.247 --> 00:16:34.167
Jessica Baladad: So you're not caught off guard when you're submitting receipts to be reimbursed that if they get denied that you're just not left in the dark with that.

00:16:34.167 --> 00:16:41.947
Michelle Fern: Okay, so let's talk about the other part of that, which is your financial responsibility as a pet parent.

00:16:41.947 --> 00:16:55.227
Michelle Fern: And this is important because I think if you don't keep that in mind, that there's financial responsibilities other than buying the fun stuff, you know, food and treats and toys and, you know, for some clothes.

00:16:55.227 --> 00:17:01.447
Michelle Fern: There's also the other side, which are annual vet visits and special things that come up.

00:17:01.447 --> 00:17:03.127
Michelle Fern: You need to have a plan.

00:17:03.127 --> 00:17:05.747
Michelle Fern: And I think that is one of the reasons.

00:17:05.747 --> 00:17:18.207
Michelle Fern: And just from learning from guests I've had on the show, that's a large percentage of why pets that are adopted are brought to shelters, because people don't keep that in mind that there's gonna be that financial obligation.

00:17:18.207 --> 00:17:19.387
Jessica Baladad: Right, exactly.

00:17:19.387 --> 00:17:32.287
Jessica Baladad: And you think about, you know, surgeries that your pet may have, not just getting fixed, quote unquote, but other issues that may come up in the future if they get cut or hurt or get into a fight.

00:17:32.287 --> 00:17:35.907
Jessica Baladad: You wanna know what options and choices that you have ahead of you.

00:17:35.907 --> 00:17:42.107
Jessica Baladad: For instance, you know, there's the cone of shame that a dog or a cat may have to wear so that they don't lick their wounds.

00:17:42.747 --> 00:17:50.167
Jessica Baladad: However, there's a product out there called CareVet that you can actually place on the wound that deters the pet from licking themselves.

00:17:50.167 --> 00:18:03.147
Jessica Baladad: And then when you're making these decisions and you know, you've got these financial responsibilities, if you have that pet insurance that can help you with that, you don't have to second guess yourself when you're making the decisions that are best for you and your pet and their recovery.

00:18:03.847 --> 00:18:16.747
Michelle Fern: Well, I like the idea too that if you for some reason, you don't have pet insurance or you have a pre-existing condition with your pet, that you have a plan to set aside money.

00:18:16.747 --> 00:18:17.687
Michelle Fern: Have that plan.

00:18:17.687 --> 00:18:24.007
Michelle Fern: I've had more with my dogs in the past where this was at our vet, which was VCA.

00:18:24.007 --> 00:18:30.687
Michelle Fern: I used a different one in Los Angeles and they have something where you pay a certain amount per month.

00:18:30.787 --> 00:18:36.147
Michelle Fern: It includes dental and includes checkups and a lot of the basic shots.

00:18:36.147 --> 00:18:40.407
Michelle Fern: And I was fortunate that neither of my dogs were sick.

00:18:40.407 --> 00:18:43.367
Michelle Fern: Minimal, I mean, I did have a couple scares, minimal.

00:18:43.367 --> 00:18:50.987
Michelle Fern: Cats, I did have one of those surprises with Dennis because as we talked about, cats are stored creatures.

00:18:50.987 --> 00:18:57.467
Michelle Fern: Dennis, I wish I had known this sooner because the poor little guy was suffering, but he had crystals in his urine.

00:18:57.467 --> 00:19:04.507
Michelle Fern: And at that time, and we're going back, Dennis was, well, wow, we might be going back like almost 10 years.

00:19:04.507 --> 00:19:09.887
Michelle Fern: So that was almost $3,3500 10 years ago.

00:19:09.887 --> 00:19:15.067
Michelle Fern: So in today's inflation, that would be what 7,000, 6,000.

00:19:15.807 --> 00:19:17.147
Jessica Baladad: Yeah.

00:19:17.147 --> 00:19:18.647
Michelle Fern: If you're not prepared.

00:19:18.647 --> 00:19:24.727
Michelle Fern: And then you also have to, I took him to one place and they said, well, his potassium levels are high, just put him down.

00:19:25.187 --> 00:19:26.987
Michelle Fern: And we're like, no.

00:19:26.987 --> 00:19:29.067
Michelle Fern: So it wasn't VCA who said that.

00:19:29.067 --> 00:19:33.027
Michelle Fern: My VCA vet and they took care of him and he's Maine Coon.

00:19:33.027 --> 00:19:35.147
Michelle Fern: So he made friends with everybody.

00:19:35.147 --> 00:19:38.107
Michelle Fern: They even, they said, we want to keep them a couple extra nights.

00:19:38.107 --> 00:19:40.127
Michelle Fern: And I said, I didn't really budget for that.

00:19:40.127 --> 00:19:41.367
Michelle Fern: They said, no, it's on us.

00:19:41.487 --> 00:19:45.867
Michelle Fern: We had so much fun with Dennis, but I've told the story a few times on Cattitude.

00:19:45.867 --> 00:19:48.907
Michelle Fern: But the thing is, luckily I had savings.

00:19:48.907 --> 00:19:53.887
Michelle Fern: And so, and it was 3000, which wasn't, you know, sometimes you can get a real shock.

00:19:54.007 --> 00:19:59.147
Michelle Fern: Oh, it's 10,000, 15,000, which is something most people aren't prepared for.

00:19:59.147 --> 00:20:01.727
Michelle Fern: Not even 3000, most people aren't prepared for.

00:20:01.727 --> 00:20:06.887
Michelle Fern: And the other thing was the fact that I, you know, was, I caught it in time.

00:20:06.887 --> 00:20:07.627
Jessica Baladad: Yeah.

00:20:07.627 --> 00:20:15.667
Michelle Fern: What do you say to those people that are listening now that, you know, I want a cat, it would be such a great enhancement to my life.

00:20:15.667 --> 00:20:16.927
Michelle Fern: And they have that.

00:20:16.927 --> 00:20:19.727
Michelle Fern: And they're thinking, how can I be financially prepared?

00:20:19.727 --> 00:20:23.847
Michelle Fern: Or those people that have maybe, cats are like potato chips.

00:20:23.847 --> 00:20:27.267
Michelle Fern: As Bernadine Cruz, one of our show hosts says, you can't have only one.

00:20:27.267 --> 00:20:29.727
Michelle Fern: So most of us have two, three, four, five cats.

00:20:29.727 --> 00:20:32.847
Michelle Fern: And they go, how can I afford pet insurance for five cats?

00:20:32.847 --> 00:20:40.107
Jessica Baladad: I think you really have to have an honest look with yourself and say, hey, this is a life that I'm bringing into mind.

00:20:40.107 --> 00:20:43.887
Jessica Baladad: And this isn't just some commodity or just a thing.

00:20:43.887 --> 00:20:48.787
Jessica Baladad: This is a life that you will be part of for their entire life.

00:20:48.787 --> 00:20:54.887
Jessica Baladad: You know, it's like that saying, you know, a pet is part of your life, but you are their entire life.

00:20:54.887 --> 00:21:03.647
Jessica Baladad: And you have to think about what kind of care that you're going to be able to offer to that pet for the longevity of their life.

00:21:03.647 --> 00:21:07.547
Jessica Baladad: You know, I live in a military town and I respect our military.

00:21:07.547 --> 00:21:17.407
Jessica Baladad: But so many times I see in Facebook groups, hey, we have all these pets and we're getting ready to PCS somewhere else and we're not able to.

00:21:17.407 --> 00:21:19.667
Jessica Baladad: And that means that they're locating somewhere else.

00:21:20.367 --> 00:21:22.247
Jessica Baladad: And we're not able to take all of our pets.

00:21:22.247 --> 00:21:27.427
Jessica Baladad: And so we're giving, you know, a couple of them, all of them up for adoption.

00:21:27.427 --> 00:21:42.667
Jessica Baladad: And it breaks my heart because that military family probably didn't think about that when they initially adopted those pets or when they took on those pets in their lives at their current duty station.

00:21:42.667 --> 00:21:50.867
Jessica Baladad: Because a lot of these military families are young and you know, they just want to have the normal of a life as possible and pets are part of that.

00:21:50.867 --> 00:21:55.187
Jessica Baladad: So it's just sad and breaks my heart when I see that happen sometimes.

00:21:55.187 --> 00:22:04.947
Jessica Baladad: And thankfully, the community that I live in is very supportive when it comes to issues and instances like that, that we do have nonprofits that can support those animals.

00:22:04.947 --> 00:22:07.767
Jessica Baladad: But it's becoming an increasing problem.

00:22:07.767 --> 00:22:17.167
Jessica Baladad: And I think you just really have to take a look at yourself and understand your obligations and your responsibility to a life that you're going to have and bring into your home.

00:22:17.587 --> 00:22:18.647
Michelle Fern: That's a great point.

00:22:18.647 --> 00:22:32.007
Michelle Fern: And I can understand the military point of it, because sometimes people are deployed overseas and quarantine situations can be difficult or based on what the country's rules are with that.

00:22:32.007 --> 00:22:35.627
Michelle Fern: But I agree, though, you have to think of things long-term.

00:22:35.627 --> 00:22:45.207
Michelle Fern: If you can't afford the cost of your pet long-term, including all of the health care responsibilities, there are things like cat cafes.

00:22:45.607 --> 00:22:52.647
Michelle Fern: You can go to a shelter and volunteer, so you get your feline fixed that way.

00:22:52.647 --> 00:22:56.327
Michelle Fern: There's shelters for dogs too, but more cattitude.

00:22:56.327 --> 00:22:58.847
Michelle Fern: But there's other ways you can do that.

00:22:58.847 --> 00:23:06.187
Michelle Fern: What would you advise for someone who says, I'm not going to do pet insurance because I had some bad experiences, heard some bad things.

00:23:06.187 --> 00:23:10.247
Michelle Fern: Although, I would really encourage people to get out there and look, it's changed a lot.

00:23:10.247 --> 00:23:18.727
Michelle Fern: I remember first hearing about pet insurance, wow, like more years than 25 years ago, it's been around a long time and it's evolved.

00:23:18.727 --> 00:23:25.067
Michelle Fern: But what about for those that are going to say, you know what, I'm going to be more financially responsible.

00:23:25.067 --> 00:23:28.987
Michelle Fern: What would you recommend as far as a goal dollar-wise?

00:23:28.987 --> 00:23:34.367
Jessica Baladad: Dollar-wise, I mean, it depends on the cat, the breed that you're going to get.

00:23:34.367 --> 00:23:43.327
Jessica Baladad: Do research into how much it costs to care for that cat, how long could they possibly live, what are the potential issues that they could have.

00:23:43.327 --> 00:23:55.367
Jessica Baladad: They actually have genetic tests out there now that you can have your cat take, and that will kind of give you an insight into the issues and problems that they may have medically with their health in the future.

00:23:55.367 --> 00:24:03.487
Jessica Baladad: So you can kind of use those things and decide, hey, is this breed of cat what I'm willing to take on and will I be able to save responsibly?

00:24:03.487 --> 00:24:19.667
Jessica Baladad: Because if you get into a situation where you have to go to the emergency vet or something and the cost can be astronomically high sometimes, they do have option like for care credit, but my understanding is that the interest rates are just insane.

00:24:19.667 --> 00:24:28.847
Jessica Baladad: And you really don't want to get caught up in a situation where you could go into like lots of debt and it's just not good for you, the pet or anyone.

00:24:28.847 --> 00:24:35.887
Jessica Baladad: So I would just say do your research about the breed and decide if that's the financial obligation you're willing to take on.

00:24:36.587 --> 00:24:38.207
Michelle Fern: I absolutely agree.

00:24:38.207 --> 00:24:43.987
Michelle Fern: In all of your research that you personally have done, do you have a dollar amount as a goal?

00:24:43.987 --> 00:24:45.447
Michelle Fern: So should people save?

00:24:45.447 --> 00:24:54.127
Michelle Fern: I know it can vary so much, but to just give some people an idea, have at least what, couple thousand savings for your pet, just in case.

00:24:54.307 --> 00:25:00.207
Michelle Fern: I do know from experience that emergency vet hospitals can run easily for visit.

00:25:00.207 --> 00:25:10.047
Michelle Fern: I mean, 400 for just blood work to maybe 1800, you know, a couple thousand for an emergency vet visit, depending on what the situation is.

00:25:10.047 --> 00:25:14.767
Michelle Fern: So what would you advise just as your suggestion on a dollar amount?

00:25:14.767 --> 00:25:18.347
Jessica Baladad: If it were me, then this is me personally, and I did have this set aside.

00:25:18.347 --> 00:25:20.667
Jessica Baladad: I had $5,000 set aside.

00:25:20.667 --> 00:25:23.547
Michelle Fern: That's what I was going to say, because you need a good chunk.

00:25:23.927 --> 00:25:26.547
Jessica Baladad: Yeah, that went very, very quickly.

00:25:26.547 --> 00:25:28.087
Jessica Baladad: I'll just say that.

00:25:28.087 --> 00:25:30.947
Jessica Baladad: But I'm glad that I had it, and we were financially prepared.

00:25:30.947 --> 00:25:36.447
Michelle Fern: And for those of you that are thinking, oh my gosh, how in the world can I save $5,000?

00:25:36.447 --> 00:25:37.927
Michelle Fern: That is so much.

00:25:37.927 --> 00:25:38.567
Michelle Fern: You know what?

00:25:38.567 --> 00:25:40.847
Michelle Fern: Do it all of those financial places.

00:25:40.847 --> 00:25:48.227
Michelle Fern: If you haven't listened to any financial people or did any work, you should think of where you can cut out money.

00:25:48.227 --> 00:25:51.987
Michelle Fern: I have nothing against any coffee place or going out to lunch.

00:25:52.267 --> 00:25:57.807
Michelle Fern: But your $5, $6 coffee a day habit can be $300 for the month.

00:25:57.807 --> 00:25:58.567
Michelle Fern: Saved.

00:25:58.567 --> 00:25:59.547
Michelle Fern: Easy.

00:25:59.547 --> 00:26:05.027
Michelle Fern: Do you run into this when you're having talks about people like, where can I find the money?

00:26:05.027 --> 00:26:07.187
Michelle Fern: Everything is so expensive these days.

00:26:07.367 --> 00:26:13.627
Jessica Baladad: I have run into people in different Facebook groups, like with the Small Cell Lymphoma group that I'm in for cats.

00:26:13.627 --> 00:26:19.507
Jessica Baladad: Sometimes you may be able to find a non-profit, let's say that you have a cat with diabetes.

00:26:19.947 --> 00:26:26.487
Jessica Baladad: There may be a Cat Diabetes Foundation that has an allotment where you can apply for funds.

00:26:26.487 --> 00:26:31.487
Jessica Baladad: There aren't very many of them, but I have seen them go around in different Facebook groups.

00:26:31.487 --> 00:26:33.367
Michelle Fern: That's a good option too.

00:26:33.527 --> 00:26:44.227
Michelle Fern: I always think you should start with yourself to see how you can, if you're not a saver, change your lifestyle a bit so that you are a responsible pet parent for your cat.

00:26:44.227 --> 00:26:48.127
Michelle Fern: Should your cat get ill or should there be just an emergency?

00:26:48.127 --> 00:26:49.607
Michelle Fern: Because that happens too.

00:26:49.607 --> 00:27:00.527
Michelle Fern: But there are a lot of wonderful groups out there, and there's more and more out there, which just says a lot to where we've come to how much we love our pets in this day and age.

00:27:00.527 --> 00:27:07.067
Jessica Baladad: So there are some tips that I have for anyone who wants to advocate for their cat effectively at the vet.

00:27:07.067 --> 00:27:11.847
Jessica Baladad: And this actually coincides with what I advocate for in the breast cancer space as well.

00:27:11.847 --> 00:27:18.587
Jessica Baladad: You know, number one, find a great doctor for yourself and you're gonna find a great vet for your cat.

00:27:18.587 --> 00:27:21.307
Jessica Baladad: Number two, do your self exams.

00:27:21.307 --> 00:27:24.487
Jessica Baladad: And you can do that by downloading the Feel For Your Life app.

00:27:24.487 --> 00:27:29.927
Jessica Baladad: On your cat, we know that you pet your cat, but you also kinda wanna go thoroughly under its belly.

00:27:29.927 --> 00:27:41.827
Jessica Baladad: On occasion, we know that cats don't like to be rubbed there or touched there, but you wanna actually feel for anything, any lumps or bumps or abnormalities, because mammary cancer is a thing for female cats.

00:27:42.467 --> 00:27:44.847
Jessica Baladad: And then, genetic testing.

00:27:44.847 --> 00:27:51.167
Jessica Baladad: You would do it for yourself, if you wanted to know about your genetic disposition to cancer or disease.

00:27:51.167 --> 00:27:54.227
Jessica Baladad: And they also make those for cats as well.

00:27:54.227 --> 00:28:01.587
Jessica Baladad: So those are my three tips for advocating for yourself and your cat whenever you're going through a medical issue or situation.

00:28:01.587 --> 00:28:04.007
Michelle Fern: I wanna thank you so much for coming on Cattitude.

00:28:04.007 --> 00:28:06.547
Michelle Fern: Can you share your app once again?

00:28:06.547 --> 00:28:12.527
Jessica Baladad: Sure, it's Feel For Your Life, and it's available in the app store or the Google Play Store.

00:28:12.527 --> 00:28:15.107
Jessica Baladad: And you can also find it at feelforyourlife.com.

00:28:16.327 --> 00:28:19.427
Michelle Fern: I wanna thank you so much for coming on Cattitude.

00:28:19.427 --> 00:28:23.447
Michelle Fern: I'm so glad that you are in your sixth year of survivorship.

00:28:23.447 --> 00:28:26.007
Michelle Fern: I hope your cat continues to do well.

00:28:26.007 --> 00:28:26.767
Jessica Baladad: Thank you so much.

00:28:26.767 --> 00:28:28.387
Jessica Baladad: I appreciate it.

00:28:28.387 --> 00:28:32.147
Michelle Fern: I wanna thank everyone listening to this episode of Cattitude.

00:28:32.147 --> 00:28:33.047
Michelle Fern: Very special.

00:28:33.047 --> 00:28:36.127
Michelle Fern: Be sure to check out the app Feel For Your Life.

00:28:36.127 --> 00:28:39.307
Michelle Fern: You know, that saying, the life you save may be your own.

00:28:39.707 --> 00:28:46.807
Michelle Fern: So, very important for all women and for men, because it does affect a small percentage of men, breast cancer.

00:28:46.807 --> 00:28:56.987
Michelle Fern: I wanna thank Jessica for her information and advice on pet health insurance, as well as suggestions for being financially responsible for your pet.

00:28:56.987 --> 00:28:59.347
Michelle Fern: Thanks to everybody listening to Cattitude.

00:28:59.347 --> 00:29:02.527
Michelle Fern: I am so grateful for your listenership for all of these years.

00:29:02.527 --> 00:29:04.147
Michelle Fern: Thank you so much.

00:29:04.147 --> 00:29:07.667
Michelle Fern: And of course, thank you to my cat crew, Dennis, Charlotte and Molly.

00:29:08.367 --> 00:29:12.147
Michelle Fern: I do have fun set aside for you, but I hope you stay nice and healthy.

00:29:12.147 --> 00:29:17.427
Michelle Fern: And this show would not be the same without the magic work of Mark Winter.

00:29:17.427 --> 00:29:19.367
Michelle Fern: Thank you, Mark, for all you do.

00:29:19.367 --> 00:29:22.787
Michelle Fern: And remember, lose the attitude, have Cattitude.

00:29:23.707 --> 00:29:27.007
Announcer: Let's Talk Pets, every week, on demand.

00:29:27.007 --> 00:29:29.667
Announcer: Only on petliferadio.com.