“How can I save him?” started a post on Reddit’s r/Cats community. “He was recently diagnosed with FIP and I cannot afford the life-saving treatment he needs. I despair. He is my world,” continued user u/rainbowsandbutterfly.
The community moderator has removed the post from the subreddit. While she’s not directly asking for donations, they might consider the post a violation of rule 5, “Do not raise funds, contests, or promotions.”
However, users of the community have rallied around her and her cat, Ashton, providing funds and support.
FIP, or Feline Infectious Peritonitis, is a condition caused by a genetic mutation to a feline coronavirus (yes, the coronavirus is also the bad guy in this story) that interferes with a cat’s ability to recover.
“Once a cat develops clinical FIP, the disease is often progressive and almost always fatal” Write Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. However, there is “recent therapy that has been offered, but has not yet been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of FIP in cats,” the site continues.
https://www.reddit.com/user/Rainbowsandbutterfly/comments/r0mif0/ashton_updatehello_everyone_we_are_back_at_the/?ref=share&ref_source=link
That is exactly the treatment Ashton is currently receiving, thanks to the generous donations of lucky people from around the world!
One user, u/scholarlyfox, even offered to cover the entire course of treatment! “Hey if you want to give the vet my number, I’ll happily cover the treatment,” they suggested. They also set up a GoFundMe, surpassed the $8,000 target!
“Call me a crazy bitch but I love him to the deepest part of me,” u/rainbowsandbutterfly wrote in one update. “So knowing all of that it’s easy to keep pushing today and honestly this Reddit community has shown me what amazing people are.” On GoFundMe, she added: “I lost his brother earlier this year to brain cancer and I would do anything to not lose him.”
Luckily, thanks to the kindness of strangers online, Ashton is getting the life-saving treatment he needs!
