Lady Gaga’s dog walker Ryan Fischer is speaking out about his recovery journey and has started
a GoFundMe campaign 6 months after he was shot in Los Angeles.
Let’s get into it.
As you may remember, Lady Gaga’s dog walker Ryan Fischer suffered near-fatal injuries
back in late February when he was shot in the chest while walking Lady Gaga’s French
Bulldogs.
Two of the dogs, Gustav and Koji, were stolen by Ryan’s attackers.
In April, the Los Angeles Police Department arrested 5 individuals for their alleged involvement
in the crime.
The suspects pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.
Thankfully, the two stolen dogs were safely recovered after the attack, but Ryan still
had a long road to recovery as he underwent multiple surgeries to repair a collapsed lung.
At the time of the incident, Lady Gaga tweeted her support for Ryan, writing, quote, “I
continue to love you Ryan Fischer, you risked your life to fight for our family.
You’re forever a hero.”
In May, Ryan opened up on Instagram about no longer being able to work with dogs due
to his trauma.
In part of a lengthy caption, he wrote, quote, “Along with the media attention and trauma
recovery, I am - for the first time in a very long time - without purpose, which has been
the hardest part of this chapter.”
Now, Ryan is sharing how he has been working through this tough time by traveling around
the country.
Unfortunately, Ryan also revealed that over the past two months he has depleted his savings
and has been relying on the support of friends and family.
And now he has started a GoFundMe campaign so people who would like to can donate what
they can to help.
On Monday, Ryan launched the fundraiser with a goal of $40,000.
At the time of reporting, donors have contributed nearly $20,000 toward that goal.
The GoFundMe features a video highlighting some moments from Ryan’s healing journey
along with a statement.
Ryan shares, quote, “A few days ago, I said goodbye to Trudy, a quasi-reliable 1991 Ford
Falcon rental that drove like a boat in high wind.
With just me, Trudy, 3 stuffed animals that resemble dogs I care for very much, and WAY
too many personal items, across the US we teetered along for two months.”
He continues, quote, “At times I was scared.
I was lonely.
I felt abandoned and unsupported.
I had long bouts of depression and doubt and self-pity.
But those backroads that took me to desert campsites and Walmart parking lots and rest
stops and friends and family to New York and back began to help me see why I had chosen
to leave the security of the Hollywood Hills where I fought for my life and mobility.”
Ryan goes on to share more about his healing process and the journey of reclaiming his
body and mental health.
Things that have helped Ryan so far are retreat centers, trauma programs, queer healers, creatives,
and spiritual leaders.
He also states that he hopes to continue to connect with those interested in keeping up
with him through, quote, “writings, discussions and quirky videos (and maybe an interpretive
dance or two).”
Ryan hopes the $40,000 will help him afford a new van and continue on his recovery journey.
The statement concludes, quote, “I love you, and thank you for all the ways you have
supported me throughout; I truly can’t wait to see how the next step of this journey unfolds
for us all.”
The GoFundMe page has earned mixed reactions from fans, some of which questioned why Lady
Gaga herself can’t just pay Ryan the $40,000.
This person tweeted, “did he not literally get shot while trying to protect HER dogs.
gaga better pay that 40 grand to this man who has been through it.
literally will not make a difference to her bank account.”
This person agreed, writing, quote, “If only he had an Uber rich boss who could thank
him for his sacrifice.”
Other people couldn’t quite agree with this sentiment, like this person who tweeted, quote,
“It's not gaga's responsibility to fund all of her employees personal life ventures.
He's a grown ass adult and let's not act like he was part of the "Team" he was the dog walker
hunny.
Just another job on his resume.
He's gotta work like everyone else”
Another person had a different view of the situation, writing, quote, “Maybe…
JUST MAYBE… he thought she already did enough or he didn’t want to ask her because he
didn’t want her to feel obligated so he took it into his own hands.
Believe it or not, Gaga doesn’t know everything that’s going on at all times.
She’s not omnipotent.
Everyone sit down.”
The differing opinions on social media have actually led Ryan to take to his Instagram
to clarify the situation.
He started off the post, writing, quote, “Reading some of the comments and media spins on my
journey has been quite jarring, and I think I need to clarify.
I am grateful for all the ways I have been provided for in my recovery.”
He goes on to explain that his recovery is his own personal journey and that no one should
be blamed for what happened to him.
He emphasizes that his decision to ask for help is his own personal choice.
We do want to point out that no one actually knows the details of how Lady Gaga helped
and may be continuing to help Ryan behind the scenes except for the people directly
involved.
And Ryan has continually shared his love for Lady Gaga and her adorable dogs on Instagram.
He wrote back in March, quote, “@ladygaga: your babies are back and the family is whole…
we did it!
You have shown so much support throughout this whole crisis to both me and my family.
But your support as a friend, despite your own traumatic loss from your kids, was unwavering.
I love you and thank you.”
We cannot even begin to understand the trauma Ryan has experienced, and we wish him nothing
but the best going forward.
If you would like to donate, we will leave a link to Ryan’s GoFundMe in the description.
For more on this situation, click right over here for another Clevver video.
Then hop to the comments and let me know all your thoughts.
As always, I’m your host Renee Ariel, you can follow me on socials @reneeariel, and
I’ll see you next time!