When you’re experiencing homelessness, every day is a struggle just to get by. But for many people, one constant source of comfort is the unconditional love of a pet.

Last September, our staff at the Minnesota Urolith Center at the University of Minnesota received an email from a local veterinary clinic that immediately touched our hearts:

“A client’s dog urgently needs bladder stone removal. Last year our clinic covered the visit because the owner was homeless. This week the animal shelter paid for the appointment—but the dog still needs surgery the owner cannot afford.”

That dog was Bamsae, an 8-year-old Shih Tzu who meant the world to her devoted pet parent.

Despite the hardships she faced, Bamsae’s owner never stopped fighting to get her the care she needed. By the time we met them, the pet parent had managed to find temporary shelter—but the cost of treatment for Bamsae was still far beyond her reach.

Without help, Bamsae would continue to suffer.

Thanks to the generosity of a compassionate donor, we were able to step in.

Using advanced, minimally invasive techniques—including basket retrieval and voiding urohydropropulsion—our team carefully removed multiple painful bladder stones made of struvite and calcium oxalate. The procedure was a success.

Soon after, Bamsae woke up pain-free for the first time in a long time.

When she was discharged, Bamsae ran straight into the arms of her pet parent. The relief and gratitude in that moment were unforgettable. Because of one caring donation, a devoted dog and the person who loves her most were able to go home together—healthy, hopeful, and still side by side.

Stories like Bamsae’s are possible because of donor support.

Donations to the Minnesota Urolith Center help pets and the people who love them in many ways:

• Providing urolith (stone) analysis at no cost
• Offering expert consultations to veterinarians
• Developing innovative, less painful stone-removal techniques
• Sharing the latest prevention strategies with veterinary professionals
• Putting results and recommendations in the hands of care-providers with the Minnesota Urolith Center App
• And, in special cases like Bamsae’s, helping families who cannot afford veterinary care

For some pet parents, their animal is their only family. Your support ensures that love doesn’t have to end because of financial hardship.

With your help, more pets like Bamsae can receive the care they need and stay where they belong: in the arms of the people who love them most.

Jody Lulich is a professor of internal medicine at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine and co-director of the Minnesota Urolith Center.