I'm Charis and for the past year one of my fur babies, Buffy, has been fighting symptoms of her FIV. I rescued her in 2020 on a camping trip where she was going from campsite to campsite looking for food. She followed me everywhere I went, including walking with me to the bathroom, waiting for me outside the bathroom until I came back out, and walking back to the campsite with me. I couldn't leave her, and when she let me hold her in my lap for the three-hour drive back to my apartment, it was clear I was meant to take care of her. When I found out she had FIV, I knew there would be difficult times down the road but I didn't expect that to happen less than three years into her life.

She started exhibiting symptoms that suggested FIV was starting to take over her body in the spring of last year. It started with anemia and severe weight loss. Her doctor and I were able to treat and get rid of the anemia with an iron supplement but since then, more issues have arisen and treatment has become increasingly difficult.

Two emergency vet visits in the past few months have led to the conclusion that in addition to FIV, Buffy is facing FIP which has generally been a death sentence for cats despite there being a tricky and difficult treatment. We are looking at months of treatment, vet visits, and bloodwork to monitor her progress on top of the thousands I've already spent on emergency vet visits and regular vet visits to monitor her and have fluid drained from her abdomen. I've been able to manage it so far with a Care Credit card but as I have another cat who also needs routine vet visits, I've gotten to the point where I'm about to need more help than my Care Credit can provide.

I'm an actor and a nanny and have been picking up extra babysitting work but am at the point where I can't work any more than I already am while still having time to actually take care of Buffy, work on my career, and also like, sleep. For those who don't know what the life of a working-class actor looks like, jobs are often few and far between and getting paid for that work is often complicated and takes a long time which is also why a writers' strike is happening and also why the actors' union, SAG, has announced the possibility of a strike authorization if re-negotiating contracts with the AMPTP (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers) doesn't go well. There are often weeks where auditions come in every day or every other day and are due in less than 24 hours meaning that actors are up working late into the night, and sometimes into the next morning, after and before a regular work day. You don't get paid for any of that work which is why many actors have service industry or childcare jobs. You have to make money while also having flexible hours to have as much time to spend preparing for, taping, and editing auditions, and maintaining your career in countless other ways, as you do working your day job, but for no pay.

All of this to say, I am trying as hard as I can to take the best care possible of the beings who trust me to do that for them but I've reached the point where I have to acknowledge that I need help and it can't hurt to just ask. Even just sharing this page is great, in case you know anyone who might feel inclined to help out a woman full of cortisol, and a kitty full of abdominal effusion and poop. At the risk of being so lame that no one wants to contribute to this fundraiser at all on principle, I'm happy to accept any amount of help at all that will help Buffy to slay her FIV demons. Her FIVampires, if you will.