A mum has sold the family car to help raise £5,000 to save their kitten from a killer strain of cat coronavirus. Samantha Howard, 36, says she needs the money to pay for a trial drug to save her children's beloved kitten, Nala, from FIP - an advanced form of feline Covid.
If cured, 16 week-old short-haired Nala would become the first kitten in the UK to survive the disease using the trial drug, Samantha said. She's set up a GoFundMe appeal to raise the sum needed.
Single mum-of-three Samantha, from Tyldesley, Wigan, says Nala would need 90 days of treatment and that the trial drug is being used successfully in the US.
She said: "My children adore Nala. She is part of our family. She sleeps with my eldest daughter every night. She loves cuddles and she has a cute little squint. I just can't tell them that I can't afford to save her. I have to do everything I can. I'd also like to raise awareness amongst pet owners of the dangers of coronavirus. It's a killer disease."
Samantha - mum to Katie, 16, Nathan, 11, and three-year-old Scarlett, bought Nala from a breeder two months ago. She said she seemed happy and healthy at first and the family fell in love with her.
But five weeks ago, Nala suddenly fell ill. Samantha said: "Nala was lethargic and not eating. I took her to the vet who thought she maybe had worms. But she deteriorated very quickly, she couldn’t even stand up.
"I took her to an animal hospital and was told there was no hope. I was so devastated. I couldn’t bring myself to have her put down. I took her home for one last weekend with the children."
Samantha then decided to seek a second opinion at Bolton's Animal Trust and it was there that Nala was diagnosed with wet Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP) – a mutation of feline coronavirus.
She said: "I was shell-shocked. I had no idea coronavirus was so deadly in cats. The vet told me there was a trial in the US, which was getting good results, not offered by charities or covered by pet insurance. By now, Nala's organs were leaking with fluid, which had to be drained daily.
"I also discovered there was research into FIP at Cambridge University, but they couldn't accept Nala onto their programme." Samantha said their only chance of saving Nala was to pay £500 fortnightly for daily injections of Remdesivir - a drug which is also used to treat Covid in humans. The total cost of the drug and veterinary care will come to over £5,000.
Samantha, who suffers from lupus and epilepsy herelf, said: "I cannot work at the moment because of my health, but I am using every penny I have towards saving Nala. I have even sold our family car.
"The GoFundMe page is set up directly to the vet, so that I don't receive any of the money. We would be so grateful for any donations to help save our precious kitten; she's our baby and we can’t imagine life without her.
"If she survives, she will make history, as the first kitten in the UK to survive the disease using the new drugs. After just five days of treatment she is already showing signs of improvement. We have to have hope that she can come through this."
"Nala is not only our pet, she is our family. Our beautiful girl that gives us the most beautiful squints when she sees us, the most amazing cuddles and kisses. She is now unable to walk, not eating and in pain. She needs to be treated as soon as possible otherwise she will die. Please help us save this baby that so deserves to live her best life with us."
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