YouTube star Mikayla Raines dies by suicide at 29; husband blames online abuse

Animal rescue activist and YouTube star Mikayla Raines has died by suicide, according to her husband. She was 29.

Ethan Raines announced her death in an emotional video on her YouTube channel Monday.

He said that for years his wife suffered from various mental health issues and struggled to cope with online criticism.

"She couldn’t bear what she was feeling any longer, and she ended her life," he said. "And it breaks my heart that someone who is selfless and devoted her life to animals could have so much negativity pointed at her."

"And to those of you that pushed her to this, every one of you that had been responsible for making her feel this way, I wish you had to feel what she felt," he added. "I wish you had to feel what I feel."

Mikayla Raines created a nonprofit animal rescue organization, SaveAFox Rescue, in 2017, when she was 20 years old. The organization, which is based in Lakeville, Minnesota, is dedicated to rescuing foxes from fur farms and providing them with "forever homes." It has saved more than 150 foxes, according to its website.

Since then, she built a large following on social media dedicated to her advocacy efforts, accruing more than 2.4 million followers on YouTube and hundreds of thousands on other social media sites.

Ethan Raines said he performed CPR on his wife for 15 minutes before paramedics arrived.

He encouraged people who are "feeling lost and hopeless" to reach out to friends, family members or crisis hotlines and for those with loved ones who are struggling to "do something or say something before it’s too late."

"Despite this being the biggest loss of my life and feeling like I have a literal hole in my chest," he said, "I will not let Mikayla's light be extinguished, and I won’t let negativity win, and I won’t let her mission fall apart."

He said he intends to continue his wife's work and asked for privacy in the near future.

"As long as you guys will continue to support all of us here at SaveAFox, we will keep pushing forward” he said. “I’m confident we can bring more light to this world, and we’ll be doing it for Mikayla."

Mikayla Raines also leaves behind a young daughter who was featured regularly on her social media accounts, Freya.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.