Hello, my name is Robert, and I appreciate you taking the time to consider donating to this gofundme during a difficult time for my family. On Wednesday July 9th, after extensive emergency medical care, we found ourselves saying goodbye to our beloved shepherd Winnie. She was surrounded by love, and by the people she worked tirelessly to protect for the past 7 years, as she peacefully passed away. This unexpected loss has been crushing for us, and particularly for our children Harry and June, who have grown up knowing that their loyal pup Winnie was always right there by their side. We've truly lost a member of our family.

Unfortunately, as is often the case, this heavy emotional blow has come alongside an unmanageable debt that was incurred to pay for the incredible veterinary care that she received at the University of Minnesota Animal Hospital. For the context of how we found ourselves sinking much further into debt than had been projected, I will provide below the full story of Winnie's final week with us, but in the end her medical care resulted in an unanticipated $25,000 of emergency veterinary debt. The grief that we are feeling is becoming mixed with worry and stress surrounding our financial situation, so we are seeking any support that you may be able to provide, and we are immensely grateful for every donation that may come in, no matter the size.

Winnie was an incredible dog. She fully lived her life striving to protect all of us as her family. She was diligent, devoted, and selfless. The love that she felt for her pack of goofy humans was boundless, and she always made it known just how excited she was to be with us. We lost a truly wonderful friend this week. As Juniper tearfully said, as we left the animal hospital for the last time, "She was such a great dog. No one will ever replace Winnie."

Thank you for your support. ❤️

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The story -

On Wednesday July 2nd, Tia and Michelle brought Winnifred into her vet to be evaluated for persistent vomiting that she was experiencing overnight. There, the doctor determined that there was some sort of mass or blockage in her intestines causing the vomiting. She would need emergency surgery, and the prognosis was unclear. Her vet explained that they could attempt the surgery there, but if any complications were to arise, or the diagnosis turn out to be more severe, they would have to euthanize Winnie during the surgery. Alternatively, they suggested transferring her to the U of M, where they would be able to manage a more complex situation. Obviously, this would be more costly, citing $3k at the lower end and $10k at the upper end. At this time, very unfortunately, I was on vacation with the kids visiting Aaron's family, and so they were not able to be there with Winnie before undergoing a very risky procedure. Tia and I spoke on the phone and decided that it would be unimaginable to choose the riskier option, and in all probability let the family dog die before the kids could say goodbye. Winnie was transferred immediately.

At the U of M, Winnifred was rushed into emergency surgery, where they discovered that she had suffered mesenteric torsion - a condition where the intestines become twisted up and blood supply can be cut off from the vital organs. Often this condition can still be fatal once caught, but during the procedure her intestines regained color, and Winnie survived the surgery - which one vet described as a miracle. They did discover some cloudy, discolored fluid in her abdominal cavity, suggesting an infection, so Winnie would need some extended stay at the hospital for treatment and monitoring. This stay was expected to be about 2-3 days. The primary concern was that she would develop sepsis in her gut, so they were consistently monitoring for signs of those bacteria. During this time, she was refusing her food (something she was known to do at any sign of stress), and so a feeding tube was applied for her. After the fifth day, with Winnie's markers mostly improving, her vet explained to us that he was still hopeful for her to reach recovery, but he would've liked to see her progress further along at this point. Still, most signs were moving in the right direction, so we remained optimistic. We were encouraged by the consistent (if a little slow) improvement in her condition, however every step of this process required us to expand the financial debt even further. It was at this visit that Winnie was able to finally see the kids for the first time. Her eyes perked up and she wiggled her body, and she ate her first two bites of food since arriving at the hospital. She had a light in her eyes.

The following day, Tuesday the 8th, Tia received an update from the vet that Winnie had eaten a full meal, and her numbers had notably improved! In my mind, I believed it was the reminder of her love and devotion to the kids that had given her body the energy to fight off the infection that she was dealing with. I think that this was the most hope we had had all week. Then on Wednesday, Tia, Michelle, and the kids went to visit again. Harry sent me a photo of Winnie walking outside with the veterinary staff. "She's walking better and drinking her water!", they said. We were all feeling so relieved. At that time, she was still having some trouble with her breathing, so the vet said that he was going to run another test to see what might be causing the respiratory issues. He ran her samples one more time and discovered what they had all been desperately hoping to avoid - her condition had become septic. This was the worst possible news. Not two hours after walking with her outside at the hospital, feeling the distinct hope of recovery, we were all being called back to the hospital to decide how we wanted to proceed.

Here were the options - another exploratory surgery, with about a 20% shot of success and potential further complications, costing another $10-15k, or euthanasia. The doctor was incredibly honest, vulnerable, and compassionate. He sat on the floor alongside us, crying alongside us, explaining that he didn't have significant hope for the surgery, but he would move forward however we wanted. The surgeon even offered to come back in that night on her day off to do the surgery. Everyone at that hospital told us endlessly what a wonderful dog Winnie was, how patient and gentle and strong she was. She was clearly adored in this space. Everyone wanted to do, and did do, every possible thing to help save her life. In the end, however, there was only one humane and realistic option - we needed to say goodbye to our sweet girl that night.

The vet stepped out to give us time to sit with her, to give her as much love as we possibly could. We all tried to find a way to say our best goodbye to this incredible member of our family. We talked about happy memories we had with her. We told her we were proud of her. We assured her that we would all be safe, as that was always the most important thing to her. Harry and June embraced her and kissed her on the head, and then Aaron sat with them in another room while the vet returned to help her pass. Tia, Michelle, and I surrounded her with love, and pets, and words of comfort as she was freed from the suffering that she had been fighting so hard to get through.

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Thank you for taking the time to read this. Thank you for considering lending your support to help us get out of this financial pit while we grieve the loss of our wonderful Winnifred. We all miss her dearly, but we are so incredibly grateful for the time that we were given to share with her as family.