In loving memory of Kobe the husky

Hello friends and family, as you may know by now, Kobe the husky passed away suddenly on June 20, 2022 due to complications from his congenital heart defect. He was only 2.5 years old but lived a wonderful life with his brother Tunechi the husky.

Kobe had three major medical emergencies during his time on earth. Each time, he had arrhythmias of his heart that were uncontrollable. The first two times, about 9 months apart, the vets taking care of him determined it was likely a one-off situation, the first due to toxins in his bloodstream and the second due to anaphylactic shock possibly from a bee sting. He had no other signs of health issues after recovery each time. The third time happened in May 2022. We were at a dog park, Kobe was living his best life being the fastest runner, then suddenly, he sat down in the middle of the park, plopped over shortly after, then pooped himself. He was fatigued like the previous two episodes. We rushed him to an emergency vet and eventually the staff told us to prepare ourselves for the worst. I was 37 weeks pregnant then and begged Kobe to stay with us to at least meet his baby sister. A miracle happened, literally what the staff said, and we were able to bring Kobe home the next day after intensive treatment of all sorts of medications and designated staff who stayed with him to watch his vitals the entire time.

Baby Lauren was born a few days later (yes, this emergency likely put me into early labor, though mom and baby are healthy so it's okay). Our family was filled with joy and Kobe was stuck to his new baby sister, although we did start noticing some behavior changes and a loss of appetite for Kobe. We chucked it up to the heart medications he was taking and would be on for the rest of his life, though we were in touch with our vet almost on a daily basis since there wasn't really a diagnosis for what happened.

Early morning on June 20, day after Father's Day, Kobe suffered a grand mal seizure at home at 2am. He was laying at the edge of our couch where I was nursing Baby Lauren then suddenly started shaking and eventually giving us the loudest, most horrific howl we heard. Again, we rushed him to the same emergency vet that treated him a few weeks ago. He was stable when we arrived at the vet, though given his medical history, we decided it was a good idea for him to stay there and be monitored for some time.

We were in touch with the vet almost on an hourly basis. Around 12 noon, we discussed bringing Kobe home to spend some time with Tunechi and Lauren as we were learning he didn't have much time left as his heart was giving out, affecting his liver function and oxygen levels. I was prepared to pick him up around 5pm once he passed all the exams for release.

Around 2pm, I received a call saying Kobe suffered another seizure and now his arrhythmia is back. This is it. This is the end. No more coming home. No more meds. No more miracles. I brought Tunechi to the vet to say goodbye to his brother and around 3:04pm, Kobe entered heaven. I use this specific time because that was when baby Lauren was born a few weeks ago. Kobe waited for her arrival and made sure we all settled in before taking his journey to rest.

Kobe was my shadow. We decided to foster him in early March 2020 when he was just 3 months old and his time was coming up at a local shelter. Then the pandemic hit so we kept him a little longer. Before we knew it, he was our dog. There was no getting rid of him. He was stuck to me. We love our furry boys. And our hearts are totally broken having lost Kobe so suddenly at such a sensitive time for our family already. What's made this even harder is that we've accrued more than $10K in vet bills AFTER getting reimbursed by our pet insurance. Additionally, Tunechi has developed arthritis in one of his elbows, has been suffering from anal gland ruptures for the past few months, and now has a totally broken heart, missing his brother. Needless to say, while we are warmed by baby Lauren's arrival, our home is very much so missing Kobe's presence.

After much encouragement from friends, I am starting this GFM campaign because we need help with cutting down these vet bills that have been piling up. We greatly appreciate any amount you can offer to support us at this time. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out. If you prefer to use another platform (Venmo, Zelle, etc.) to contribute, please let me know. Thank you for your consideration. Please give your furry loved ones an extra hug and kiss for us.

Love you, Koko-be. You'll be in my heart.