Help Finn Beat FIP

Finn is a very special 1-year old cat who brings love and joy to his family and everyone who follows him on Instagram (@Finn_the_Persian). All we ever wanted was for him to bring happiness to others, as he came to us last year after losing our cat Gizmo to cancer. After suffering from on/off fevers that later developed into severe inflammation of the eyes (uveitis) and vision loss, we we’re devastated to learn he had FIP. FIP (or feline infectious peritonitis) is a mutation of the feline coronavirus and always results in imminent death. That is, until now.

 

With the help of the FIP Warriors, Finn has been receiving an experimental drug that has shown great promise in curing a high percentage of cats with FIP. Treatment consists of 84 days of a black market medicine (GS-441524) dosed by weight, type of FIP, and severity of symptoms, followed by another 84 days of observation (to ensure symptoms do not return). Because it’s not yet approved and vets cannot dispense or administer this drug, it is very expensive and we have to give Finn the daily injections ourselves. Because Finn suffers from ocular/neuro FIP (also referred to as “dry” FIP), he needs a high dose and has been bumped up a few times due to vision loss and anisocoria (uneven pupils). His current dose is 3.4mls which costs about $65 per day! This is in addition to the expense of frequent bloodwork, checkups (including monthly ophthalmologist rechecks), supplies and laser light therapy to help with the pain and open sores that develop from the meds (which is thick and acidic).

 

We are fortunate to have a large line of credit with CareCredit (comes from having as many pets as we do), and we were able to borrow the money to pay for the vials of medicine. However, we were recently informed by our Warrior Admins that Finn would be eligible to switch to pills since he is doing well on his current dose of GS. Why this is important is because the injections are incredibly painful. Finn requires almost 1ml of sedatives 2 hours prior to the shots just to endure the pain. He has open sores from the medicine and because we’re not vet techs, sometimes we hit a muscle or need to jab 2-3 times if he jerks and the needle falls out. We dread the shots (and he does too), but we do what is required because we know it’s working and this is the only way he can beat this cruel disease.

 

We would love to move Finny to pills by the halfway mark (he’s currently on day 33), however, the pills are more expensive due to his type of FIP (7 pills at $105 per day). Since we budgeted for the vials, we are hoping to raise enough money to pay the difference. Yes, can you believe it? $1,700 is only the difference! Factoring the $3,000 in vet bills just to get the diagnosis, plus the cost of treatment for 84 days ($5,000), checkups, bloodwork, laser light therapy, we are getting in way over our heads. Finn is such a good, sweet boy and takes his shots, but it would be so WONDERFUL if we can make the remainder of his treatment less painful. We just love him so much, he doesn’t deserve this. Please help us, even a small donation can add up, and we promise to always pay it forward once Finn is cured and we can financially do so.

 

If you’ve read this far, thank you! — Vaughan Family