Cat almost died

So I just wanted to post a warning that might be well known but I sure didn't know. To be clear I've always known cats like string and it can be bad if they swallow it but this is still a bit of a shock .... 10 months ago we adopted a kitten that was born of a stray and gifted it our than 6 year old ( spare me the lecture about kids and pets as this was more of a ploy to get her to share in the care and finally mature enough I thought she could handle a pet without traumitizing said pet... rajah is my baby boy and I take full responsibility for his care ) I am very careful with him and I don't let him in rooms that are not in my mind cat proof but 4 days ago a careless in law living with us didn't make sure her door was shut when we left as a family to see a movie in theater , when I came back I found cat under her bed .... I quickly collected him and determined naughty boy no worse for wear .... that night he vomited for the first time in his life . I determined it was the dreadful hairballs and thought no more of it outside a abstract thought in a abstract way I was going to have to figure a better way to deal with it ( he is part Maine coon and needs brushing daily to keep his hair shedding anywhere near sane in Texas weather ) . The next night he vomited no less than 5 times ... it's hard to count as he sleeps with me and by 3 I was cleaning it up and passing out near on near auto ... at 4:30 am I realized something was really wrong . At 7 am I sent my daughter to school and proceeded to try to get him a same day visit at a vet without resorting to er ( really expensive ) at 11am he threw up what looked and smelled like literally poop .... he was in the car and on the way to kitty er In less than 20 minutes .... hours until the us tech came in than came the diagnosis ( string thing caught in abdomen area ... 4K to remove .. surgery today if possible... in the morning if I wait that long he might be dead . To be clear I love my cat more than just about anything ... he is in my top 5 but I have a kid , a husband and other family and 4K meant what the heck can I pawn and how deep in debt can I go and who isn't eating ramen noodles for a month .... the answer well it had me in a panic attack . Frantic I called every vet in the area and finally found one who agreed to the surgery for no more than half that . I rushed him in .... listless at this point and howling in pain .... I dropped him off and started the frantic process of rearranging funds so I can pick him up that night .4 hours later I got the call ..... a freaking shoe lace .... HE ATE A WHOLE SHOE LACE. He is home resting now .... kitty medical insurance already bought to avoid ever ever weighing his life in dollars ever again.... daughter informed her Summer activities are severely impacted but yes I wanted to warn everyone .... the cat will eat shoelace and it can kill him .... oh and in laws informed whoever can't manage to keep their door shut will have me force kitty proofing said room myself because I never ever want to go through that again .

Thank you for sharing your story with us.   It is an excellent reminder that cats and strings can be a deadly combination, one that cats unfortunately seek out whenever they can.  You handled everything exactly right and bless that vet who agreed to perform the surgery for half the going rate.  Having to make a life and death decision about our beloved kitties based on financial considerations is so difficult.   I can't tell you how worried I was that your story was going to end with your kitty passing away - I had forgotten the title of your post.   It was an absolute joy to get to the end and learn he is okay. 

Pet insurance is a terrific idea.  A lot of us (like me, for example) put that off because our cats are still relatively young.  There are freak accidents, though, as you describe and this is a good reminder to me that I really should check insurance out.  Your story proves that an accident can happen anytime and anywhere, even when a kitty is protected as carefully as yours is.

I hope your kitty recovers quickly.  He is very lucky to have such a loving family watching over him.