When temperatures plummeted because of the “polar vortex,” the conditions outside became deadly. A Minneapolis man, who recently fell on hard times, could have sought shelter for himself during the frigid weather, but he chose to stay in his truck, with his beloved dog, and his decision resulted in severe frostbite on his feet.

Jay Mitchell recently lost his home, and his wife, who died from cancer. He still has his dog, Hero, and when the bitter cold set in, he chose not to turn away from his best friend. The pair huddled in his truck, beneath blankets, to fend off the cold – but it wasn’t enough to prevent his feet from suffering terrible damage.

As reported by Fox 9 News, Mitchell discovered how badly injured his feet were after an area church secured a hotel room for he and his dog – it was there that he finally warmed up, and the blisters on his feet appeared. Mitchell said, “When I got to the motel room about two hours after warming up I hadn’t been really warm in days and days and my dog was so happy he was bouncing off the walls to be warm and then I noticed white blisters starting to form on my toes.”

He wound up at a hospital burn unit for care, but left, against doctor’s orders, to care for his dog – the severity of the frostbite became even more apparent shortly thereafter and now Mitchell may have to have his feet amputated.

Helping Jay and Hero

As the story got out, a temporary foster home was found for Hero and a fundraiser has been set up for the man who chose to endure the cold to be with him. Already, over $34,000 has been donated to the GoFundMe account. The man fostering Mitchell’s dog established the fund and wrote:

My name is John. My family is fortunate enough to be caring for Hero, Jay’s dog, during this time.

The hospital has had an overwhelming request of how to help Jay and Hero.  All donations will be going towards the long recovery ahead of him.

Now more than ever, Mitchell needs help. If you are interested in making a donation, you can find the GoFundMe account here.

(Image of Hero via GoFundMe)