Livable Housing for a Disabled Family & Dogs

Hi; we're a family of disabled, housing-insecure queer people trying to make a life for ourselves. We need to fix the severely unsafe living conditions that are making us & our pets sick. This situation is very urgent but absolutely fixable. Here's what will get our house permanently livable & safe.

Cleaning & Extermination: ~$4000

Veterinary care: ~$2000

Appliances, furniture, & accommodations: ~$2000

[Note: While I was in the process of starting this GoFundMe, we became the victims of probable arson; the place we’re fundraising to fix here is safe, but I will update with more info later.]

Here's some more background & detail on the situation, if you want it:

During this pandemic, our family (three disabled adults) experienced a slow decline in our mental & physical health, which we thankfully stabilized. At the same time, however, we also discovered 1: several surprise expenses, 2: our house had a major mice (now also rats) infestation, 3: two of our oldest dogs died within a month of each other, & 4: one of the other two dogs had heartworms.

This was all heartbreaking -- but we know, with your help, we can fix things permanently.

When all three of us were depressed, the house got very dirty. As we began to improve last Spring, we pooled our energy, taught ourselves how to clean better, & fixed almost everything by ourselves; unfortunately, the severity of the mice issue overwhelmed us, undoing most of the progress. It wasn't a loss, however, because we now knew that if the core issues were repaired & accommodations put in, we can absolutely tackle any subsequent challenge.

Here's what we need.

Permanent extermination of the rodents: Recently, the rats have begun biting us. We need to get rid of them as soon as possible. We’ve found at least one highly recommended local service that will exterminate & extract the rodents, then steel plate every hole they came in from, which we need -- not only would the problem be solved, but it should prevent it from happening again.

Cleaning Service: Rodents are deeply unsanitary, which requires professional assistance to deal with. With help from a friend, a local business came by last week & partially cleaned the floors of half the house; this already had a massively positive effect on all of us, so now we just need to finish the job -- 3-hour cleaning sessions, $60, every week. Once the rodents are gone, we’ll be able to scale this back to once/twice a month, as a simple accommodation.

Vet: Our dog Bonesy passed away from a sudden onset mystery illness in September, just shy of 10 years old; a month later his mama, our dog Madeline (15 years old), also passed away from ongoing age-related complications. Both of them going at once was devastating for all of us, & our other two dogs are now getting as many tests done as possible, far before their usual check-ups -- we've already discovered (& begun treating) a new heartworm issue in one of them (Mimi). This is all very expensive compared to our usual vet costs, &, on top of that. if we intend to adopt again (we do) then we need to do so while Mimi is still healthy enough for a new dog's presence. None of that is difficult for us to navigate, though -- we've had dogs all our lives. Once the expenses are paid for, we'll be able to grieve peacefully.

Appliance & furniture replacements, accommodation devices, etc: While hard to price, we'll buy new recliners (to offset pain), a toaster oven (so all of us can cook), a washer & dryer we've already been priced for by a friend, some basic storage & organization containers, a device to assist putting on socks and shoes, etc. Any extra money we save will be put to use here for all of that, + practical things like a dishwasher or a better wheelchair for myself, which could also prevent other types of emergencies in the long run.

In short: We have a plan, & we know it'll work. With your help, we'll be able to live better, happier, healthier lives.

Thank you for any & all support!