Hello everyone!

When my friend set up a GoFundMe for her pup, I was helping her fix some stuff on her campaign and decided to poke around the site since I'd only ever seen pet-based campaigns in passing on social networks and forums.

I saw that people were raising money for things like in vitro fertilization, moving to a new city (someone asking for a $240,000 goal received $1,000 from one person!), tuition, utilities bills; you name it, you can fund it. For some reason I always assumed these campaigns were for people in life or death situations and who needed the quick effect of crowdfunding.

 

Would you establish a campaign online for assistance if you needed it? How would you feel about asking for donations to fund your expenses, from the routine bills right up to emergencies?

In talking to a few people, I realized I wouldn't want to be burdensome to the people around me. I wouldn't advertise asking for any donations and I wouldn't want my family to see and think I'm struggling, or for others to think I don't have the foresight to be prepared for emergencies. If I was really in a pinch, I know if I asked, my family would help me out as long as I wasn't being frivolous and wasteful.

I feel bad asking for anything. I had lots of trouble doing those chocolate bar sales in grade school, and I have trouble asking for sponsors for charities. At least for charities, I can stick within the family or advertise in my networks and they'll known I'm doing something for a good cause rather than floundering in my living situation. I certainly wouldn't mind a hand with vet bills though.  

edited; because sentences are hard, evidently

No. I simply would not do it. I feel that when I got these cats, I got them for life and I became their caretaker. It's not up to somebody else to fund them; it's my responsibility.

We've had a ton of unplanned vet bills with this gang and with their predecessors. So many things have happened with these kids, from unplanned (but unpreventable) operations to meds for various diseases as they got older to a host of anything and everything. It's what happens with pets sometimes. So many unforeseen things. And as our cats get older, we know we will continue to do this.....it's what we do. We took it on.

There are way too many people who think it's cute to have a pet without realizing that pets are a huge responsibility that they either cannot or will not take on. It's a lot of fun to have to cat or a dog.....until something happens. And it always will. Always. And then, when it does, there's no money to take care of the problem. And off they go to Go Fund Me for somebody else to pay the bill.....because they didn't take everything into consideration. But it's not our responsibility to pay for an operation for another's animal (unless we want to). Too many people willing to take the easy way out and too many people willing to pay for them to do so.

It's really that simple and I would not do it. We have always managed in the past to pay our own bills without asking for charity. It's called responsibility.

Totally agree. I originally took this out of my original post above since it sounded like it was turning into a gripe, but the friend who started the GoFundMe can afford the care for her dog (she's employed full time in her career of choice, and she's got another dog, a cat, a bunny - none of whom have seen vet care unless it was an actual life or death emergency, in addition to a toddler and a newborn), but wants the help so she has more financial security. You know, for baby clothes and stuff. The dog is only 9 months old, so they got him after they knew they were expecting the baby... but she has never been my prime example of a financially responsible or logical person.

Another one of the funds I scrolled by on the site was "Help save our Christmas kitten!"

It goes hand in hand with having that budget too. It shouldn't just address immediate and current expenses. It should prepare us for the unexpected, whether they're human or animal (or mechanical, because those certainly aren't cheap).

I might, but only for extreme emergencies. I am pretty good at budgeting, and that includes expenses for things that aren't supposed to happen. But things don't always go right in life. If I ask for donations, I would probably be the most forthcoming asker ever, just because my conscience requires me to account for every single penny I might get, and every single tiny step I am taking to resolve the emergency.

I'll never ask for something like a potato salad. No, it has to be something truly an emergency and truly out of whatever I planned for.

Well, to be fair, the original potato salad guy just did it as a joke/bet from a friend and things got a little weird :lol3:. Fortunately he found a way to donate it to charity (giving it directly to charity isn't allowed but he used the money to throw a concert and then donated the proceeds from that).

As for the question. . .no, I don't think I'd be comfortable asking strangers for financial help. For anything really.

I would for an expensive emergency.  For example if (God forbid!) one of my dogs was attacked by another dog (not one of mine).   Yes, we take pets on for life, but somethings are just catastrophic.  Or if we were in a car accident and the dogs needed major vet care (I have insurance for myself).   I wouldn't consider the things pets develop with old age as in this category, those are things I plan for along the way.

For every day bills?  No way.    NOT what it is for, IMO.  It is for unforeseeable things which do happen.    This is a way to help spread out the burden. 

Christmas cat, don't get me started!  Grrrrr.

I know of 2 people who used this method to get funding for a film  / documentary.   One is a doctor (PhD) doing a film on a personality trait; the other is a person doing a story on the Market Basket  business (if you live in New England, you likely heard about the major meltdown over the summer of 2013).    In both cases, the person needed $50,000 seed money to get big backers to support the project.  Folks interested in the specific topic gave, many just gave $5, but the seed money was raised, and both projects are in film production.

I would never dream of asking for money from strangers for anything. I think it's just not done. If God forbid i needed money for one of the cats I'd pay in installments.
By the way can somebody help me with my municipality taxes!!!!! ;-)

I would have to be beyond desperate and have exhausted every possibility and I still don't think I could do it. Responsibility has been drummed into my head since birth. I don't take any financial obligation lightly.

Freedom said:

I know of 2 people who used this method to get funding for a film  / documentary.   One is a doctor (PhD) doing a film on a personality trait; the other is a person doing a story on the Market Basket  business (if you live in New England, you likely heard about the major meltdown over the summer of 2013).    In both cases, the person needed $50,000 seed money to get big backers to support the project.  Folks interested in the specific topic gave, many just gave $5, but the seed money was raised, and both projects are in film production.

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Why, oh why don't they open a Market Basket in Seekonk? The new Attleboro store and the New Bedford store are just too far to do my regular shopping at.

I don't consider money for different projects like you mentioned in the same category as what pink dagger mentioned. I have donated to artists, etc in the past to help them fund projects.

Willowy said:

As for the question. . .no, I don't think I'd be comfortable asking strangers for financial help. For anything really.

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I would never ask complete strangers to fund my pets' medical bills or expenses. It just seems wrong somehow. My pets aren't someone else's responsibility, you know? The vet hospital I go to does offer payment plans and financial aid should there ever be a situation where I may need it.

But there are people who think nothing of setting a fund to raise money for their pet's needs and promoting it on social media and other online sources. I remember a few years ago the online edition of a local newspaper had an article about a resident whose cat was recently was diagnosed with diabetes and the person needed at least $1000 a month to cover expenses and there was a link to a GoFund Me site. I sent a private message to the person via the GoFundMe site and gave her tips on how to keep her diabetic cat's costs down and recommended that she check out FelineDiabetes.com for more tips. I got an inial response back but nothing else after I sent a reply back with more tips and a recommendation for a better more experienced vet. Needing $1000+ a month for a diabetic cat is pretty much unheard of unless the cat also has other medical issues going on. When I had a diabetic cat, I could go two or three months without needing to buy anything (food, insuiln, syringes, test strips, etc) or pay for diabetes-related vet bills.

pinkdagger said:

 
I feel bad asking for anything. I had lots of trouble doing those chocolate bar sales in grade school, and I have trouble asking for sponsors for charities.

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Arrggh! I absolutely hated those school candy bar sales I was so not comfortable with asking anyone outside my family to buy candy, mostly because I had a serious case of social anxiety (back then it was called "shyness"). The mere though of going door to door talking to strangers made me sick , which no one understood at all.

I would not ask for help from random strangers. I agree people should know all involved in care when they get an animal including cost. 

I also have seen the other side of the coin. I work in human medicine and have elderly patients on fixed incomes. They would feed their cat before picking up their prescriptions. Do I think their cats are better off euthanized or living in a shelter because they are not wealthy? No, they truly love their animals and I think some of them live for the companionship of their animals. They will even bring in pictures of their cats/dogs to show me.

It would have to be something really major!  And likely not  for myself but for my kids.  One I read was for a man with a rare condition who needs a better home to help him function.  Something like that I can see giving to; but I won't help someone who appears to just be irresponsible.  Unexpected things can happen to anyone; but for the most part that's not something I can see asking the general public for help with.  Another good one was the sister-in-law of someone I know.  She was a homeschooling, stay-at-home mom to 5 or 6 kids and a headache turned into something much worse. The last i knew she was in a vegetative state in a nursing home and her husband had lost his job trying to care for everyone.  I would help someone like that get back on their feet and cover medical costs.  It's major and unforeseeable.  

I do see people starting legitimate businesses, film projects and things like that as legitimate.  I'd have to know they were going to be diligent with my money.  

LTS3 said:

 
Arrggh! I absolutely hated those school candy bar sales

I was so not comfortable with asking anyone outside my family to buy candy, mostly because I had a serious case of social anxiety (back then it was called "shyness"). The mere though of going door to door talking to strangers made me sick

, which no one understood at all.

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Ugh me too!!  Now that I have kids; the thought of school fundraisers make me ill.  I'd rather write a check than go ask everyone I know to buy whatever they are selling!  Only a few my friend's kids have done have been interesting enough for me to WANT what they are selling!  It's awful.  My DD has my personality and there is NO WAY I am forcing her to go sell stuff.  My friends kids have come home with fundraiser packets in the first 2 weeks of school.  it's ridiculous.

PS: Introverts unite!  But quietly and in our own homes.     

KittyMomma1122 said:

 
I also have seen the other side of the coin. I work in human medicine and have elderly patients on fixed incomes. They would feed their cat before picking up their prescriptions. Do I think their cats are better off euthanized or living in a shelter because they are not wealthy? No, they truly love their animals and I think some of them live for the companionship of their animals. They will even bring in pictures of their cats/dogs to show me.

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This would break my heart! Especially since we all know what it's like to compromise when it comes to our pets. To non-animal people, it sounds like another sob story or excuse, but it's pretty palpable when it hits close to home.

AbbysMom said:

I don't consider money for different projects like you mentioned in the same category as what pink dagger mentioned. I have donated to artists, etc in the past to help them fund projects.

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Yes, I would personally consider business or educational campaigns as well as charities in a different boat. I think the difference I see is like looking at KickStarter (intended for more business-oriented ventures and the odd potato salad) vs YouCaring (fund anything - but lots of reaching out for help for health care or unexpected funeral expenses).

I just don't get how people can think it's okay to utilize these services for their convenience just so they can continue living comfortably, instead of making their own sacrifices when it's still an option. Asking someone else to pay your tuition and hydro bills? That's not really okay in my books...

But I've also considered that I'm seeing this from a pretty privileged perspective. I've stretched my money, but I've never known what it was like to not have a home and to have to get back on my feet starting fresh or questioned where my (or my pets') next meal would come from. Some of these people could be people with literally empty bank accounts who are wandering around and hopping into a library or something where they can to get online for help when the resources in their region have failed them or are stretched just as tight to help others.

It's a shame; but  you will always find people willing to take advantage of the generosity of others.  It makes it so you HAVE to be more skeptical when people are asking for funds.  I think I am more comfortable in those situations where people are going through a tough patch; if it's someone I know or the friend of someone I know.  I've had friends come to me for things like kids clothing and food.  I'm happy to give physical things like that.