We adopted Casper, along with his brother Liebchen, back in September of 2023 from The Friends of Oakland Animal Shelter. They came into a welcoming home and became the perfect siblings to our 1 year olds Tiffany and Captain Howdy, whom we adopted the previous year from the same shelter. Casper is the smallest of the group. He's also the most rambunctious! He likes to taunt his siblings, climb behind the tv, and is mesmerized by our printer when it's printing. When all the others are sleeping, you can find him knocking water cups over and attempting to climb into the bathtub after a fresh shower. He's fearless and even the loud whirring of the vacuum doesn't scare him.

Last Monday, April 8th, Casper wasn't acting like his normal self. We noticed he was being a little clumsier than usual. Later in the evening, we found him meandering and meowing endlessly around the house as if he was trying to find us and his siblings. Things were definitely unusual when we realized he wasn't interested in dinner. We tried to get him to play but he was paying no attention and seemed very lost. The laser pen and even the printer couldn't catch his attention and it seemed like he couldn't see what was in front of him. I held him in my arms and he immediately started to doze off, which was another rare occurrence for him to fall asleep so quickly. It was at that moment we decided to bring him to the emergency vet hospital.

While at the hospital, the doctor had Caspers blood drawn and informed us that while they took his blood, Casper was having seizures. The doctor had suspicions of Casper having the dry version of Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP). FIP is a fatal systemic coronavirus infection and a leading cause of death in young cats for which no effective preventive or FDA approved treatment is available. The doctor informed us that he couldn't actually diagnose Casper with FIP unless he went to a neurologist and had an MRI. He informed us that all the symptoms Casper was showing were signs of FIP but couldn't diagnose due to FDA regulations. Casper's brain was swelling. The swelling was causing Casper to be imbalanced and blind. Casper was walking in circles, confused, and crying for help. The doctor sent us home with steroids for the swelling, an anti-convulsant for seizures, and informed us that there was an online group that can help us more than he could. Because of FDA regulations, the doctor helped as much as possible, but giving us those meds was all he could do.

Once we got home that evening, we joined a facebook FIP group. The next morning, Casper was still having seizures. Fortunately, our inbox was full of messages from others who have experienced FIP. We were informed that there is a medication that can cure Casper, but because it isn't FDA approved, we'd have to get it off the black market. We met someone who was able to give us a starter dose of the medication that evening. Later that evening, we gave Casper his first injection and almost immediately, we noticed he was way better than he was previously.

The medication that we found has to be injected into Casper for a total of 84 consecutive days. Then after 84 days, Casper must be in observation for another 84 days to make sure he's completely cured. Along with the injections, Casper needs to have a full panel blood test every 4 weeks to monitor how the medication is working.

The medication is 600 dollars for approximately 25 doses. If he gains weight, the dosage needs to be higher, which means less doses for that amount. Caspers blood panels will cost about 300 dollars each visit, every 4 weeks.

We are asking for 4,200 dollars to help cover the cost of Caspers medication and vet visits. Unfortunately, insurance doesn't cover FIP because he won't be able to get a proper diagnosis without going to a neurologist for an MRI. There's a 95% chance that Caspers FIP symptoms will be cured if we follow through with his medication and blood panels.

Casper is only 10 months old, and he deserves to live an abundant life. Please help us make that happen for him.

TLDR: Casper needs help for his medical treatment of FIP (Feline Infectious Peritonitis) Please help with vet bills and medicine.