<div>Hi, my name is Sam Maggs. You might know me from my books or comics or (worst of all) from the Internet, and I've never asked for money from the public, but I find myself in a desperate situation and now I have no choice: my beloved kitten, Tabitha (Tibby for short) is sick, and I need all the help I can get to help her get well again.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I adopted Tabitha in July of 2023, right before her first birthday, from a shelter in Los Angeles called Sante D'or. She's a rare kind of Siamese cat called a Snowshoe, and she is perfect: She loves belly rubs more than anything, adores sitting in laps, and has never once bitten or scratched anyone in her whole life. She's one and a half now and has never done anything wrong.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>On Wednesday Feb. 7 I came home to find Tabitha hiding, extremely unusual behaviour from her. She was shaking and crying, didn't want to be touched, and was having difficulty walking—her back legs were uncoordinated. I took her to the emergency vet, who did bloodwork and took x-rays and told me it looked like constipation (frequent in cats) leading to a bit of an inflamed colon. We put her on laxatives and antibiotics.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I took Tabitha to her own vet the first opening they had, on Friday morning. She was improving, walking around fine, and had pooped twice. This was great news! The vet put her on a liver support pill and a probiotic and asked me to keep monitoring her.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>By Sunday afternoon, it was clear she had taken a turn for the worse. She was hiding, shaking uncontrollably, hadn't pooped since Thursday morning, wasn't drinking or eating. I showed up without an appointment on my vet's doorstep at 8am begging for help.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>A couple hours later, our vet came out with the look on your face you never want to see. She didn't want to say it, but she was convinced Tabitha had something called Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP). It is a coronavirus that lies dormant in most cats, but in some, it mutates into a fatal version of itself. It causes cats' immune systems overreact and affects their liver, abdomen, kidneys, and brain. It is aggressive, progressive, and there has, historically, been no cure.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Until now.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>FIP is a coronavirus, the feline version, and the same drugs that we developed to cure COVID in humans have been proven to cure FIP in cats, at almost a 90% rate—taking the prognosis of a cat with FIP from functionally 0% to ~90%. It is a matter of timing; the fast the cats start treatment, the better their odds for survival. It is called GS-441524, and is functionally identical to the human drug Remdesivir, which you may remember from the early days of the pandemic. You can read more about the drug, which has been approved for animal use in the UK, <a href="https://www.ed.ac.uk/vet/services/easter-bush-pathology/research/research-articles/there-is-hope-for-cats-with-fip#:~:text=GS%25252D441524%252520and%252520its%252520prodrug%252520Remdesivir%252520(GS%25252D5734),to%252520treat%252520cats%252520with%252520FIP." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>, and more about FIP <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6435921/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>. The treatment is so effective—improvement within 12-36 hours, 85%+ cure rate—that it is hailed by many cat parents as a miracle drug.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>There is just one issue:
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>The FDA has not approved the drug for use in cats.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Only in humans.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>And therefore it cannot be prescribed by my vet.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Which means I have to come by it... otherwise.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>On Monday, after receiving Tabitha's probable diagnosis, and the help of some extremely wonderful people in the FIP Warriors Facebook group, cat-knowledgeable friends, and the instant mobilization of a whole team of people on my end, I was able to drive to Irvine and give a stranger cash in a parking lot for ten vials of Tabitha's medicine. I drove back to Los Angeles and by 6pm that same night, she had received her first anti-viral injection dose.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Today is Valentine's Day, and she's on her third dose. She is still hospitalized, but the nurses say she is alert, eating, and using the litter box—and even asking for cheek rubs. All great signs.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I DO have pet insurance, but the issue here is with Tabitha's, uh... off-label medication. I have to pay for it all out of pocket, obviously. And she's going to need at least 51 vials. I'm going to have to give her 84 days of daily injections, and that means sharps, swaddles, sharp disposals, a scale to weigh her daily in order to adjust her dose, monthly bloodwork checkins... not to mention the thousands getting Tabitha diagnosed and hospitalized has already cost. Worth every single penny. I just want to make sure I can keep her in her meds for the full 84 days.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Here's a breakdown of some of the costs:
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<ul>
<li>Approximately 55 vials of GS-441 (at $80/vial) = $4,400 (Note the goal has changed as her dosage information was changed tonight based on her gaining weight - which is excellent news)
</li>
<li>Approximately 3-5 sets of <a href="https://www.healthycatstore.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">FIP Support Bundles</a> including sharps, an injection swaddle, a cat scale, treats, and other medical supplies (at $98-$300/each) = ~$1000
</li>
<li>GFM Percentage Share (about 3%)
</li>
<li>Her current vet visit expenses (already over $5000, though some will be covered by Pet Insurance)
</li>
</ul>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I'm putting enough here toward my goal that it will at least cover the costs of her vials and her sharps, and hope we're okay from there. If she ends up needing more treatment (some cats may relapse after the 84 days of shots, during which they're placed on an 84 day observation period before being declared officially cured.) The place from which I'm getting her vials will give you the extra vials for free, as a form of insurance. (I will not be posting the links to her meds here because we want to keep this treatment available for anyone with an FIP cat—if you need them to help someone, let me know).
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>If you've ever enjoyed one of my books, or video games, or comics, or hell, even a tweet, please—if you're able, I know things are incredibly difficult for everyone out there right now—please consider donating if you can. If you're unable to at this time, please share the link; every view helps.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Thank you from the bottom of my heart, from me and Tabitha and my family. We are forever in your debt.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I have high hopes for her recovery, and will keep everyone posted here and on socials &lt;3
</div>

Amanda Morgan

Bea Ilyana Joaquin

treva silverman

Anonymous

Vivian Phu

Diana McCallum

Malia Beckstrand

Andrea Wollitz

Rachel Huffaker

Celeste Birzgalis

surveen singh

Treva Silverman

Margaret Shropshire

Clayton Gaughran

Maya Meisenzahl

Amanda Reeves

Paul Baldwin

Nariman Deravi

Andrew Sparling

Help Tabitha Maggs Beat FIP

Support urgent earthquake relief and past recovery in Venezuela.

Apoya la ayuda urgente tras el terremoto y los esfuerzos de recuperación en Venezuela.

platform

Platform is iOS

Android

Adyen Google Pay Development Audience

$opt_dummy_attribute

English only

Deprecate Stripe Legacy

dyn_template_ids

Adyen V6 Bene Transfer & MyMoney Campaign Organizers - test01

Bene transfer V6 and AdyenV6MyMoney Campaign Organizers - production

OneTrust next-app audience

fundCountryCode

NextDoor Share Option Users

Fundraisers with Reactions feature capability

fundCurrencyCode

US + Non-charity COs Only

locale

fund country is US and user language is English

personId

comms-internal-person-ids

Enhanced Story Experience Users

Suggested Goal Experience Users

user language is English and fund country: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

Poster share - new funds eligible (newest 9/18)

Streaming widgets beta user

paymentProcessor

3DS payment method

user language is English and fundCountry: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

currencyCode

Money Box Donation List Prompt Experiment Audience

GoFundMe Employees

ipAddress

Mark Rieth IP Address

Version 9.2.0 and above

Fund is in English speaking country

desktop

Android v12.11.0 and above

Platform is Android

paymentMethodType

checkoutType

Payment method type group to be vaulted on success

admin pr kit prod

EUR Donation Upsell

Share Text generation Skip Fundraiser

(prod) new funds eligible for amp12 (UGC gallery)

fintrac_cad_idv_form_v2 audience

paymentProcessorAccountId

fallback mode accounts

proCampaignId

p2p legacy startfundraising page

AMP24 New Funds Only PROD (DO NOT MODIFY)

Eligible for Profile Share Badge

countryCode

charityId

UKCharities

Federated Search Internal Testing

route.pathname community

US Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks Feature Audience

International Only

fundId

braze fundraiser group 

Payment Identity Transfers ATO Risk Check (Targeted) - Production

Fundraiser Saved Payment Method Rate Limit Bypass (Production)

leaderboard-partner-id-audience-givepanel

Version 9.2.1 and above

AUD Donation Upsell audience

fundraiserCountryCode is US/EN

Active Fundraiser - Smart Default Cadence

DAF Internal

Vault on success card payment method

Platform is iOS v11.0.0 and above

Desktop users

Person ids

United States (US) users

allow yuno fundraisers for test

Mexico country code

Posters INTL

Support Comments Allowlist

NPO Profile Opted-In

iOS at or above 12.4.0

non-US recurring donors

Canada Campaign Owner Group

Fundraiser Without Meta Link

Scheduler payment tester gorup

charityCommunityId

Charities allow to be claimed unclaimed (PRD)

Canada (CA) users

UC Tipping v20250115 International

pymk_production_xplr_fe_team

Android at or above 12.2.0

Profile photo entry point audience

smart goals (fundraiser/manage) on test01

Activity Tracking v1 Beta Testing

start gfm intl allowed locales

Platform is iOS v11.2.0 and above

NPO upsell education category

unclaimed charities

prod_ach_audience

AI Chatbot Audience

amp13 only new funds (prod) (anyword auto)

UC Flow Enabled (Prod)

Payment Identity Beneficiary Verification - Production

shared notification bell audience

Custom users

ach frontend audience

Android v11.0.0 and above

Users Receiving Payments Paused Notifications

smart goals test01

Manage Coach - US English Organizers Only + new funds only

Team EGG - IP Address list

NPO recommendations prod

Fundraiser Without Instagram Deep Link

Native 11.4.0 and above

UC Tipping v20250107

checkout headers audience

ai_title_page

anyword

openai

control

manual_entry

userEmail

template_id

userId

fundUrl

isCharityCo

email

appVersion

shouldBucketIntoExperiment

isEligibleForProfileBadge

partnerId

donationCadence

isActiveFundraiser

isPartner

isMobile

npoProfileOptIn

fundIsLinkedWithMeta

hasSessionDonation

categoryGroup

isCampaignOwner

fundHasInstagramDeepLink

Native 11.3.0 and above

Native 11.4.0 and higher

New funds eligible - Video Sharing (PROD)

GB Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks V3 Rollout Audience

Thank you V3 testing whitelist

isRecurringFriendly

Is Recurring Friendly

Excluded funds - Video Sharing

NPO upsell animals category

NPO upsell disaster relief category

Logged In Users

CH Donation Upsell audience

Android v10.6.0 and above

NPO upsell essential needs category

NPO upsell medical category

userCurrencyCode

Localized Currency

NPO upsell cancer category

v11.5.0 and above

testAudience

pathname

Survicate

appVersion is at or above 12.8.0

Non-charity fund

isChallengeFundraiser

challenge-fundraisers

Payment Identity Launch Verification - Production

New funds eligible - Posters v2

CAD Donation Upsell Audience

Braze Email Tester

NPO Profile Opted-Out

iOS App Version

hasKnownDonors

PYMK has donors

iOS v12.3.0 and above

Help Tabitha Maggs Beat FIP

Still $2,545 to go. Help us build momentum.