Yogi

Donations happily accepted at:

PayPal: Lakesideinutah@gmail.com

Venmo: @Lakesideinutah

Cashapp: $Lakesideinutah

Zelle: 801-647-3312

​

July 21st, 2023

So here are we, 10 pm on a Friday night and we just drove two hours south of Tampa to Ft Myers to pick up a one and a half year old Great Pyrenees. His name is Yogi and it was given to him by the toddler that dotes on him. He’s lovely in the car, cautious but accepting of any strange hands near him even when he’s reeling in agony, and he’s incredibly gentle. No vet near his owners would help him even after his family drained every penny they had just to get him through the door. He has multiple punctures wounds ranging from his legs all the way up to his stomach and is bleeding badly from his penis. Unfortunately, while out on a walk, Yogi was attacked by a gator and fought hard to protect all he knew and loved.

Gators are a common resident in Florida. Issue is, they have numerous bacteria living in their mouth. If you’re unfortunate enough to find yourself in that circumstance, you will find that a simple bite wound can very easily lead to a life threatening infection without proper care. Yogi is going to need wound care and some strong antibiotics to make it through this without incident. His owners couldn’t afford vet care so they surrendered him to rescue to give him a fighting chance.

Truth is, our coffers aren’t great at the moment either. Sasha and Sammy ate up a good chunk of them and to have another medical dog so soon is going to wipe them clean. We’re about an hour and a half from the vet anyways. We get there at midnight. I’ll update more once we get there and get more information on his status. Hoping it isn’t anything too bad for him and I’m bracing myself in case it is. We will fight for him. His family fought for him. When they had nothing left to give, they still paid to have the gator removed from the pond to protect everyone else so that nobody else would have to face the same decision they had to when they asked for help for their boy.

He fought for his family and laid down his life for them. So now, it’s our turn to fight for him.

Since several of you asked how to donate, I’ll post the information below! Thank you guys for the offer. Your generosity means the world.

​

Update!!

He’s doing great! The team at Veterinary Emergency Group are simply amazing and hands down my favorite vet.

Yogi has multiple punctures over his body, back and several on his face and chin. But one in particular is really deep and of major concern. Luckily no organ or internal damage but he’s for sure hurting and even after nearly 12 hours its still bleeding pretty steadily.

He’s one very lucky pup! To take on a gator and walk away with only this is amazing.

​

July 22nd, 2023

I apologize for the late update on Yogi.

My only goal yesterday was to find some good pizza and Netflix. That didn’t quite go to plan.

I had no idea what I was walking into when I went to pick him up. All I heard was a pyr was attacked by a gator. Can you help? Well… I don’t know. But I’ll do all I can.

We got home with him from the ER vet at about 4am and I fell over. I’m usually in bed by 10pm. As it sits I’m currently functioning in 3 hours of sleep.

This will be a day where my coffee needs a coffee. Any serious conversations or important decisions should probably wait until tomorrow.

Yogi is doing great! I’m actually blown away at how well he’s handling things. He’s tender but we have him on pain meds to keep him comfortable. Of course he’s loaded up on antibiotics too! That helps. But he’s one very lucky pup!

The punctures told a story. The gator had his mouth all the way around Yogi’s torso, leaving 4 punctures on his back and then his undercarriage which took the brunt of the attack. I don’t even know how he got away, other than he’s a Pyr and we all know how fearless they are.

The next few days will be crucial. We have to watch for swelling as the skin was pulled away from the body cavity lining that protects the organs and created a pocket in between. If this fills up we will have to go back in and place a drain. Cross your fingers for me that it doesn’t come to that.

Infection is still a huge concern but he’s on 2 powerful antibiotics to assist with that. His labs were already showing indication of infection and the vet confirmed that within a few days he likely would have become septic without intervention. That one puncture was very deep. We will keep a really close eye on him in the meantime and of course we’ll keep you updated.

The surface stitches will need to come out in 10 days. Internal stitches will dissolve on their own.

At the moment, Yogi is enroute back home to recover with his people and they are incredibly grateful to you for helping save their family pet.

You all are the most incredible internet family we could ever ask for! You have always been right by our side every single time we needed help and I couldn’t be more grateful than I am now. It’s because of you that we were able to help this dog and his family.

Did I mention just how much I love you guys?

I love you guys. I love your heart. I love your spirit. I love how you’re willing to sit on the same emotional roller coaster with me every single time.

You are my people!