Ryan Fischer — the man who was shot while protecting Lady GaGa’s two dogs earlier this year — opened up about his near-death experience and everything the 35-year-old singer has done for him since then.
In an interview for CBS Mornings on Friday, the 40-year-old spoke with Gayle King about the traumatizing events which occurred in February when he was walking her three dogs Miss Asia, Gustave, and Koji. He recalled:
“I was scared, I was in pain. I had a feeling when they pulled the gun on me that I was gonna end up being shot. Because, in my mind, I was like, ‘There’s no way that I’m not gonna fight for these dogs.’”
Related: Whoa! Barbara Streisand Just Shaded The Hell Out Of Lady GaGa’s Version Of A Star Is Born!
Fortunately, the pooches were returned to GaGa, and five dog-napping suspects were arrested in connection with the attack. However, Ryan still has a long recovery ahead of him after suffering near-fatal injuries (parts of his lung were removed after the bullet pierced it):
“Some days are great, some weeks are not. And that’s been the big up and down the last couple of months.”
The dog walker then addressed the backlash the A Star Is Born actress received for supposedly not supporting him throughout his recovery after he created a GoFundMe page when his RV died on his cross-county wellness road trip. Many criticized Lady G at the time for not shelling out the money for his healing journey and medical bills when she is practically worth millions. But he claimed that was never the case:
“She’s helped me so much. She’s been a friend for me. And after I was attacked, my family was flown out and had trauma therapists flown to me, and I stayed at her house for months while friends comforted me and security was around me.”
He explained he wants to attend a “trauma retreat for first responders, and people from the Army, and people from the police” and continue his healing journey without any more assistance from GaGa, saying:
“LG is very supportive of my journey right now and I think it’s hard for people to understand why someone would go about healing in this way. I grew up Catholic Jesuit faith, and there’s something about giving up your resources, giving up belongings, and contributing that to society. And so, I know that doesn’t make sense to a lot of people, but she totally gets it.”
However, co-host Nate Burleson still remained skeptical following the interview:
“I’ve met Gaga on a couple of occasions. She’s a wonderful woman. So this question isn’t an attack at Gaga. But if she’s worth $300+ million, why would he need assistance from a GoFundMe? Why isn’t she funding his spiritual journey? Why isn’t he on an annual salary because he sacrificed his life for these dogs?”
To which King then clarified:
“This is the thing, Nate, she’s paid for all of his medical bills, he lived in her house, she has trauma therapists. He doesn’t want it. That’s the bottom line. He doesn’t want it. He wants to go on this journey. He wants to do it himself. … The last thing [Fischer] wants is for people to feel Gaga’s let him down because she’s still supporting him in any way he needs. This is what he wants to do.”
So understandable! You can ch-ch-check out the entire conversation with Fischer (below):
Reactions to Fischer’s first television interview on his attack? Let us know in the comments (below).
[Image via CBS Mornings/YouTube, Lady GaGa/Instagram]
The post Lady GaGa’s Dog Walker Addresses Controversy Around The Singer & His GoFundMe Following Shooting appeared first on Perez Hilton.
