GoFundme. No point? Or still worth a try?

[ImagineYouDidnt]

Would anybody give to Just Giving nowadays?

I've given to a handful over the years, always a small amount that I wouldn't really miss iykwim, & at the back of my mind I think it might be a scam. I've also only given to ones who have been given very little so far (which is a weird kind of rule that I made up for myself)

I've seen a lot of negativity about it recently.

Title tweaked by MNHQ to make it clear she is talking about GoFundme.

My dog needed a huge operation. I had insurance but I was £4k short. I sold my car. No way when I had any assets at all would I have gone begging for people’s money. I’d have taken out a loan if I had nothing to sell.

Just remembered when some absolute twerps started a GoFundMe for Harry and Meghan to help with their $14m housing costs because “Pa” had cut them off 😭

I hope your dog is doing well now?

Yes! Worth every last penny!

Regardless of the cause or the platform, I doubt you’d get many donations tbh - it’s the same as with any type of fundraising, you still have to have the network and connections to promote your GoFundMe to a wide audience. Just setting one up and then hoping generous strangers will somehow find it and give you money isn’t going to be successful.

Oh good! That's lovely to hear.

I agree.

I already give regularly to charities via direct debit.

I'm afraid I have quite a low opinion of most gofundmes - ive seen people set them up for ridiculous things that are blatant money grabs.

Not saying everyone does that but ive seen enough to put me right off then completely

ComtesseDeSpair Yes I don't think that I'm on the right social media or know enough people really.

Most of the ones that I donated to were strangers but obviously I know that not everybody will donate to strangers like I did.

satincharade That's fair enough. I haven't seen any like that but maybe if I pay attention & look for long enough then I will!

It’s near impossible to get insurance for an older cat that isn’t insanely expensive. Having a high vet bill is awful and when you’re there with your pet deciding on whether it’s ‘worth’ paying for it is incredibly difficult

Me neither - as to be frank it’s clear plenty of people just don’t bother with holiday insurance -having been in the position where I had to have my gall bladder out many years ago assn emergency in Spain - it really really isn’t worth the risk

I would happily give money to people who are genuinely fundraising for a registered charity.

I would not give money to someone for their pet costs, unless it was a close family member or friend who had unexpectedly fallen on hard times.

Generally, my view is that people should not have pets if they can't afford to make appropriate provision for them.

In fairness, there are people in my locality who rescue / trap lost or abandoned cats & get them medical attention / ops / whatever they need, & rehome them. I know it costs a fortune & it's not something that most people would do.
That's a reasonable use of GFM.
For someone who'd rather ask for money for their pet instead of missing having their nails done etc, absolutely not.

cornflakecrunchie Those people are just everything, aren't they. So wonderful.

I saw this and thought the same. Absolute chancers.

Even with insurance, the costs add up. My elderly cat first developed attacks of breathlessness needing oxygen, then seizures shortly afterwards and then a mass on his bladder before ultimately being pts.

Because of his age, the insurance premiums were high(£45 a month), his policy was about to run out before he died and they had pushed the price so high for renewal that he was uninsurable.

He had numerous tests, medications and scans. I did turn down the £3000 MRI scan and £2000 operation to attempt to remove the mass on his bladder but the care over the last few months of his life cost at least £2500 and with a excess of £250 and 10% of the claim it was only patially covered by insurance. I was lucky to have a vet plan for £30 a month which covered all consultations as without it the cost would have been hundreds of pounds more.

Gingerkittykat There were similar stories on GFM when I looked the other day.

I wouldn’t give to a crowdfunder unless it was really unusual, and genuinely needed. Eg I refuse to contribute if it’s something people should have had insurance for eg travel, and sorry op, pets, but did to a fund in my town to send a family with twins in remission from leukaemia to Disneyland Paris, crucially it wasn’t for something so expensive that ordinary people wouldn’t ever do it and they are known in the town, she was a teacher but had to quit to care for her dc - a local taxi firm lent a vehicle at no cost but we have jointly funded petrol, ferry and the drivers hotel, then Disney provided park tickets we paid for hotel and food.

Someone I follow on Facebook has just raised over £100k in 24h. She has a massive following though, and is very personable, so I think people feel like they know her.
I think you'd struggle to get the anywhere near the same level of engagement for your cat. People need to identify emotionally with the situation, and although I'm sure your cat is special to you, why would anyone else feel the same?

DuckCootLoon Thanks.