Sophie is our 4-year-old rescue cat. She was born to a feral mom we were feeding, but her mom left her behind in our backyard when Sophie was about 6 weeks old. We made the decision to bring her inside, to see if we could rescue her. Sophie was born with the herpes virus. This caused her eyes to explode out of their sockets, resulting in blindness and the need to have one eye completely removed. Sophie has been the epitome of health since she was six months old. However, at the beginning of April 2020, we noticed that Sophie was not feeling well -- lethargic, decreased appetite, sneezing, mild congestion, not wanting to be held or touched (which was odd, given how much of a snuggle-bug she's been from the very first day we rescued her from our backyard). We took her to the vet. She was found to have a mild fever of 104 and vaginal discharge that the vet suspected was linked to her previous diagnosis of herpes. We treated her with an antibiotic injection of Covena. That seemed to make her feel better; however, she began presenting with the same symptoms in mid-April so we took her back to the vet. She had no fever, but the vet suggested we send off a sample of the discharge for analysis. It came back that two bacteria were present -- E-Coli and Enterococcus Faecalis. We were given another antibiotic, this time in pill form, that was supposed to treat both bacteria. After 6 days of administering the antibiotic, we noticed she did not seem to be getting better. We could literally feel her spine and count the ridges when we pet her. She'd also begun hiding under the spare bed, in a corner that was difficult to get to her, and her appetite was decreasing considerably. We took her back to the vet, where it was discovered that she had fluid on her abdomen. The fluid was thin but yellow, and the vet suggested we send off the fluid for analysis, as she suspected it could be FIP. Sophie had 600 cc's of fluid removed from her abdomen. We also had full labs done. Sophie was severely anemic, had very elevated protein levels, and high white blood cell count, though she still had no fever. She'd also lost a significant amount of weight.  We were told on May 13th that the fluid analysis shows FIP.

We are beyond devastated. Sophie is such an integral part of our family. We were unable to have our own human babies, so we focussed on having a family of the four-pawed variety. We have always had special needs animals, since we tend to choose (or perhaps they choose us?) the ones others might deem "unadoptable" or "unworthy". We are currently a nine-cat home, all with some sort of special need, simply because we believe all beings deserve love and a chance at a healthy life. Until now, we have always been able to afford the care our furry family members require. But as the medication required to attempt to beat FIP is very expensive and is not sold through veterinarians, we have had to swallow our pride and set up this Go Fund Me to help pay for Sophie's treatment. We have exhausted all other avenues -- savings, credit cards, loans, etc. Each vial of medication is $120, and we can get two treatments from it. Sophie needs 84 treatments, plus follow up blood work and vet appointments to monitor her progress. The mortality rate for FIP is greater than 95% without aggressive treatment. We had enough in our savings to get Sophie started on treatment, but we are in desperate need for more vials to continue. Without the injections, Sophie will not survive this disease, which is so horrific, so unforgiving, and so quick in its destruction.

We know these are tough times for many people, but we would be so very grateful for anything you can provide so we can give Sophie the fighting chance she so deserves. No amount is too small. Please help us help Sophie to make her an FIP survivor, not another FIP victim.

Sophie's Pages:

GoFundMe