Donate to help me get a cat for my mental health xx

Hi, I'm Hayimeana. I'm a freelance creative and prospective postgraduate student living in Manchester, UK.

For as long as I can remember I have wanted a pet. A companion to cuddle with, someone to wipe my tears when I have another menty b, and something outside myself I am responsible to look after.

Now more than ever, this has surpassed a want into being a need for my wellbeing. Any pet owner will know how a furbaby can change even the most difficult circumstances to being manageable, simply by not being alone.

Recently, my mental health has taken a sharp decline following months of struggling to stay above water. Unfortunately, simple tasks like getting out of bed, eating and leaving my apartment have become impossible some days. There have been consecutive days I haven't left my bed due to not being able to cope with the overwhelm of both my own life, and the chaos outside my window.

Amidst drowning in my sorrows, it has been suggested to me by many caring friends and mental health professionals that it would be beneficial for my mental health to get a pet I can focus on.

This responsibility would force me to get out of bed in the morning to feed them, to socialise at the shops when I buy their food/litter etc, meet other pet owners to build connections, and most importantly have another living being to think of outside myself, outside my mind, and my own struggles.

However, the biggest hurdle has been financial stability. Like many others, I am facing difficult times and often ration what I have and try to find more ways make ends meet at the same time. While I have enough for myself most months, I feel it wouldn't be responsible to add another being into my struggle without a plan on how to care for them... which is where this GoFundMe comes into play :)

From my calculations, it would cost £1,129.16 to cover the initial expenses and the first 12 months of cat ownership. The running cost after that per year would be £842.66.

The initial £1,129.16 would cover getting the cat, insurance, food/litter and other pet essentials (scratching post etc). If you'd like to see the whole expense plan, please follow this link:

Cat Expenses Spreadsheet

Thank you for reading my plea, if you donate anything to my cause I promise I will love you long time <3