Without Fetch, this dog mom would've paid almost $5,000 out of pocket for her Bulldog’s surgery

Meet Winston, an English Bulldog living his best life in the desert

Jennifer has had an affinity for English Bulldogs since her time at Georgetown University (the school mascot is a Bulldog named Jack), but it wasn’t until a few years ago that she decided to bring one home. She was previously a dog mom to Weimaraners but after they passed, she was ready for a fresh start. Jennifer told Fetch, “I knew I wanted another dog but I didn’t know if I could have another Weimaraner because it would remind me of the other dogs. So I thought, ‘What’s the complete opposite of a Weimaraner? How about a Bulldog?’” Shortly after that, she fell in love with an English Bulldog puppy and named him Winston. 

Even bigger changes were on the horizon: when Winston was just six months old, Jennifer got a job opportunity in Arizona, so they relocated from Virginia. “If I had known that I’d be living in the desert and in the heat, I would not have gotten a Bulldog,” Jennifer said. But she and Winston soon found a community of other Bulldogs and their parents, and have been exploring life out west together ever since.

In true Bulldog fashion, Jennifer describes Winston as “a funny old man” and a “big meatball.” She said, “He’s so stubborn. He can be a grump. But then he has this face that has so many emotions. He emotes really well. You can see him smiling or sometimes he’ll be staring into space with his little tongue sticking out, and it’s like, ‘what is he thinking?’ He’s a crazy little boy.”

After a medical scare, Jennifer signed Winston up with Fetch to prepare for the future

Jennifer had considered pet insurance before Winston, but didn’t enroll her other dogs because they were older when their health issues started. That changed when a bout of pneumonia sent Winston to the emergency vet for two nights and hit Jennifer with a vet bill for $4,000. It was Winston’s first month in Phoenix and Jennifer wasn’t sure if he was having a negative reaction to his new environment. “The first thought I had was ‘Oh my gosh, maybe he’s not taking to the weather. What if I have to pay this bill every month, or if something else happens?,’” she said. Taking into account the health issues that are common for Bulldogs, Jennifer decided it was worth it to get pet insurance and enrolled Winston with Fetch to ensure she was doing everything to keep him healthy.

Knowing Winston was covered with Fetch gave Jennifer peace of mind when he needed emergency surgery

Winston got acclimated to his new life in Arizona, enjoying scenic walks and road trips with Jennifer and generally staying healthy. But a few years later he needed another unexpected trip to the vet. Jennnifer woke up on a Saturday morning and found that Winston had been vomiting, was lethargic and generally not acting like himself. The emergency vet ran an X-ray and a few tests but didn’t see anything, and Winston was sent home with meds. But Jennifer had a feeling that something was still wrong. His condition didn’t improve, so she took him in again when he hadn’t eaten anything in three days — “Which, for a Bulldog, is crazy,” Jennifer said. Her intuition was right: an ultrasound showed part of a Kong toy was stuck in Winston’s digestive tract and required surgery to remove it. 

Winston bounced back quickly after surgery, but the bills for his medical care included multiple vet visits, an X-ray, an ultrasound and an overnight hospital stay in addition to surgery. Jennifer said, “Without pet insurance, I would have had to pay close to $5,000 out of pocket in total. It was a scary and stressful situation but I felt more comfortable telling the vet to ‘Do whatever you need to do,' knowing that I had Fetch. I was grateful that in the midst of it, Fetch was easy to work with and gave me peace of mind when it came to unexpected medical expenses, allowing me to focus my energy on caring for my dog.”