Our Costly Kitty

Last week, one of our cats (the Rat) went through a bout of retching and coughing. At first, we assumed she was just working on a hairball. She's got really long hair and we've yet to have her hack one up - I figured their must be a pretty magnificent wad building up. Anyway, after a few days it became apparent that there was something more serious bothering the cat. (A) took her in to the vet and then called me with an update. Here's how I recall the conversation:

(A): I've got the cat at the vet. They think she swallowed something but they need to take X-rays to know for sure.
Me: Oh.
(A): The X-rays cost $250.
Me: Wow, that's steep.
(A): They're figuring she'll probably end up needing surgery. That's going to cost between $800 and $1200.
Me: What? Well, we don't want to do that.

--- long, painful silence ---

Me: I mean, do we? $1200?

In the end, the Rat did need surgery. Luckily, her former owner is a vet and was able to provide the service at a substantial discount (cut rate, pardon the pun).