4th Impact confirms refunding donations of deleted GoFundMe page for 200 dogs
MANILA, Philippines — Girl group 4th Impact fully refunded all the donations sent in to a GoFundMe page they set up for their 200 pet dogs but deleted following heavy criticism from Internet users and animal rights activists.
Almira Cercado, the eldest member of the group, took to social media to air out frustrations and clarifications following the backlash she and her sisters Irene, Mylene, and Celina received.
The singer began by noting she and her sisters were advised to not make any further noise after the incident, but she chose to finally speak out after they became the subject of hateful comments and cyberbullying.
She explained that four of five unrelated Shihtzus gifted by fans were impregnated by an earlier pet and the dogs multiplied at a quick pace, leading to the sisters giving some puppies to friends who were more capable of looking after them.
Almira then clarified that the Taylor Swift concert she and her sisters watched was in Los Angeles last year, not in Singapore last month, around the same time the GoFundMe page went up.
"I made a GoFundMe page 'cause I (am a) believer (that) we have DREAMERS who know our story and that they will support my vision of putting up a farm," Almira said. "I guess I didn't think carefully before I did it because I will do anything in [a] LEGAL WAY just to provide for our dogs."
The artist herself deleted the GoFundMe page after accusations emerged, and all funds were refunded before it was taken down. She even included in her post a screenshot of one $200 (around P11,400) donation being refunded.
Almira went on to say she and her sisters were never irresponsible pet owners as others have claimed, reiterating they would do anything for their dogs and will work even harder to eventually get them a farm.
"People say we are 4 impactas, no impact, Madam Inutz variants. Name everything you want but I don't care. As long as we are not stepping on someone we will be proud that singing is our bread and butter," Almira ended.
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