Doorbell Cam Captures Woman With Dog, Unaware It Was His ‘Last Moments’ – ryan

A grieving pet owner has shared devastating footage of her dog’s final moments at their home before they embarked on a vacation from which he would not return.

For many, the loss of a pet is akin to that of a family member. In fact, it can be, quite literally, a heartbreaking experience for those involved.

In 2017, the New England Journal of Medicine detailed the case of a 61-year-old Texas woman who was admitted to the ER with chest pains.

Doctors were able to determine through subsequent tests that she was experiencing Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, or stress cardiomyopathy, a condition known more colloquially as “broken-heart syndrome.”

It’s a treatable condition and one brought about by stress. In the case of this woman, one of the key “stressors” in her life at that point had been the death of her dog. It had, to all intents and purposes, broken her heart.

Wynona Catapang, a pet owner based out in LA, may not have experienced those same symptoms, but she’s still struggling with the heartache of what happened to her beloved dog Kobe.

Part of that is down to the circumstances that first brought Kobe into her life.

“We got Kobe in 2020, a month after my dad passed away,” Catapang told Newsweek. “I’d been wanting to get a dog for years, then I thought it was probably the time to get one to take my mind off grieving.”

When Catapang’s partner heard a coworker’s pug had given birth, they jumped at the chance to take one of the puppies. “Kobe was the one who approached us and immediately knew he was meant for us,” Catapang said.

Kobe was a cuddly and often quirky canine friend who enjoyed frequent cuddles with Catapang. “Kobe loved to lay or nap where the sunlight touched him, he loved carrots so much, he loved going out for walks and playing fetch and tug,” Catapang said. “He loved to sleep close to us. He was very clingy.”

He was a huge part of Catapang’s life. So much so that, when she was invited to visit friends in San Francisco for a weekend back in February, she thought little of bringing Kobe along.

A video posted to her TikTok, wynnfinds, captures the moment they set off on the trip before cutting to Kobe’s return home, in a casket. It’s a return Catapang could never have seen coming.

“He was doing all fine, and since it was a 5-hour trip, we were doing stopovers and all that,” Catapang said. “He was fine when we got to San Francisco.”

Then on February 16, Catapang recalls how they had to stop somewhere near Bakersfield because Kobe “was panting so hard.” She said: “It was like he was having trouble breathing. We gave him water, but he didn’t want to drink. He was weak when he tried to walk.”

Finding there was a veterinarian 30 minutes away, they set off in hopes of finding Kobe the help he needed. But it was too late. “He didn’t make it. He was dead on arrival,” Catapang said. “The vet said he probably had a heart attack.”

Quite what killed Kobe is likely to remain a mystery. It was only when she later reviewed doorbell camera footage that Catapang discovered she had captured.

“Sharing that video was truly difficult,” she said. “I didn’t realize that I had captured his last moments with us through our camera and him coming back home in a casket. It’s just something that will live in me for the rest of my life.”

While heartbreaking on a personal level, Katapang hopes the video and the story it tells remind viewers “just how fragile time can be,” particularly with pets.

“We often think we have more time, that there’s always another day for walks, cuddles, or play. But sometimes, without warning, that ‘next time’ never comes,” she said. “I shared it in the hopes that people will hug their pets a little tighter, be more patient, more present, and love them deeply every single day. Because you never know when it might be the last time.”