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FIP Warrior:

Sally

Hi! My name is Sally and I have been cleared to stop my special medicine! In early November 2022, Mom took me to the vet because something was really wrong with my eye. It got really bad really fast. The vet gave me tons of antibiotics and steroids, oral, injection, and drops... My eye got a little better, but my vet was frustrated by how little improvement there was. I also started losing weight. Quickly. About four weeks later, Mom noticed I was walking weird. That scared her really bad because my best friend that she adopted with me in November 2021 had started walking weird in the summer of 2022 and despite tons of vet visits and tests, the vet could not figure out what was wrong. In the space of less than four weeks, Jack went from being totally normal to unable to walk and had to be put to sleep. Now, in December 2022, I started walking weird. Again, after tons of tests and tons of vet visits, the vet again said she didn't know what was wrong. As a Hail Mary, on December 19, 2022, the vet referred us to an animal neurologist. FIP had been mentioned a few times, even when Jack was sick, but all of the tests for both of us came back negative. On December 20, the neurologist offered to do a PCR for the FIP virus. By this time, I could barely walk. This test came back positive. Mom was heart broken. She had researched this disease and knew there was no treatment. It was a death sentence. As she told the vet that, he made an off handed comment that he thought the recent treatment was having pretty good results. This was news to Mom, so she divided into the internet that day and night trying to figure out what he was talking about. She found the FIP Warriors that night and by the next night, December 21, 2022, I received my first injection. I was pretty far gone by then. I had to get shots twice a day at first. By December 22, 2022, I stopped eating. I went from 11.1 to 9.1 pounds in 6 weeks. Mom and Dad had to force feed me for a few days. Christmas was cancelled (sorry about that, Mom, I didn't feel well). On Christmas Eve, I started walking and eating again (a little). Within three weeks, you couldn't tell how sick I was anymore (except my eye was still weird, but getting better). I got vet visits and blood draws regularly. My vet was stunned by my improvement and had spent a lot of time doing her own research into this disease to help us the best that she could. By day 84, I was feeling great and most of my blood tests were normal. Globulin was still a little high, so they kept me on my pills for 31 more days. After 115 days of shots, pills, steroid drops, messes, tears, disappointment, frustration, and excitement for all of us, I have been cleared for observation! 4/15/23 I am now in my 84 day observation period.