The Rice County Sheriff’s office in Minnesota has confirmed the death of SaveAFox YouTuber Mikayla Raines. She was 29.
The office responded to a request from Us Weekly for investigative information around Raines’ death in a letter on Friday, June 27, saying records related to the matter are “active criminal investigative data.” It could not offer a timeline for when more details will be released.
An obituary posted to legacy.com said Raines died on Saturday, June 21.
Raines’ husband, Ethan, shared the news on Monday, June 23, that his wife died by suicide after experiencing online bullying. In a video posted to SaveAFox Rescue’s YouTube channel, he cited “ridiculous claims and rumors” being spread about her online.
Courtesy of Chris O’Donnell/Instagram; Courtesy of Kyle Marisa Roth/Instagram The deaths of several online stars have shaken the TikTok and influencer community — and broken the hearts of countless fans — over the years. Taylor Rousseau Grigg died in October 2024 at the age of 25 after battling undisclosed medical issues. Her husband, Cameron Grigg, […]
“She couldn’t bear what she was feeling any longer and she ended her life,” Ethan said. “It breaks my heart that someone who is selfless and devoted her life to animals could have so much negativity pointed at her.”
He continued, “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 see me find her and I wish you had to watch me perform CPR on her for 15 minutes until the first responders arrived. And I wish you had to watch helplessly as paramedics attempted to revive her lifeless body. And I wish you had to hear the screams and the cries of her family.”
Mikayla’s obituary also detailed her work, saying she began helping wildlife, specifically foxes, in her late teens and grew her following on social media as she began to find success. When she was 20, she formed SaveAFox rescue, a non-profit that “rescued foxes from fur farms, helped rehabilitate those with injuries or birth defects, and adopted foxes to other facilities with similar licenses.”
In the caption to the video, also shared via the SaveAFox Instagram page, Ethan said he would do his best to continue his late wife’s work.
The death of social media personality Joshua Blackledge has left the TikTok community heartbroken. The rising star died at the age of 16 on Tuesday, March 18, according to his online obituary, which detailed that Blackledge passed away at his home in Newport, North Carolina. A cause of death has not been confirmed. Attracting 1.1 […]
“Mikayla was truly the most amazing and inspiring individual I have ever known, and not having her here makes everything feel empty,” he wrote. “I feel broken. But I will continue her dream, and I hope to have your support going forward so that we can do good in her name.”
The SaveAFox YouTube page is currently running a fundraiser to save more than 500 foxes from a fur farm. As of this writing, it has raised over $146,000, with a goal of reaching $700,000.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
