TatorTot, a pit bull, was supposed to die in 2013.

At the time, he was on doggie death row at Minneapolis Animal Care and Control — the pound. His time was up; he survived only because he was pulled by Ruff Start Rescue. Eventually, Christi Smith of Plymouth — a Ruff Start volunteer at the time — offered to foster the rambunctious puppy and get him ready to be adopted. But on his fourth night in her home, TatorTot alerted Smith to a medical emergency involving her son, Peyton, then 4. The boy, who was sleeping, had gone into a severe low-glycemic state and had to be rushed to the hospital and revived with an adrenaline shot.

“I am never going to let this dog go,” Smith said at the time. “I owe him for the rest of his life.”

She never wanted to let this dog go, but TatorTot died May 1 after a battle with lymphoma. He was 4 years old.

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During online meeting, Ramsey County manager announces he’s recovering from COVID-19 Back in 2013, the story of TatorTot‘s role in a life-and-death medical drama went viral — for once, a positive story about a pit bull. He went on to win awards, including a PETA Heroic Dog award, a Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association Hero Award and the City of Brooklyn Park Mayor’s Good Canine Award.

(TatorTot) didn’t let up. Finally, I went to check on my son. He was barely breathing.

But ToTs, as he was known, also got to be a regular dog in his 4-year reprieve, during this second chance at life. He enjoyed rides in the car and, like any proper Minnesota dog, rides in boats. He chewed on tennis balls, played at dog parks and sometimes endured baths as well as being dressed up in props like sunglasses for photo shoots — the price of being rescued, he knew. He relished time around the campfire; in his spare time, he liked to sit and watch people eat their food. And his boy, that boy he is celebrated for saving, he loved that boy. And his boy loved him.

It was a good life and he was a good dog.

22 DAYS AT THE POUND

TatorTot’s story — what we know of it — began in a kennel at the pound. He was 7 months old when his owner released him to Minneapolis Animal Care & Control. Back then, he was called Gator. He spent 22 days in a kennel. Because he was a pit bull, he could be released only to authorized rescue organizations, so his chances of getting out were more limited than a typical dog. On May 23, 2013, a photo of the dog was posted on the Facebook page of Friends of Minneapolis Care & Control: “Gator is a handsome guy,” the post stated. “He is friendly and loves pets. Our rescue-only dogs are always at risk, especially when holding is full and we are going into a holiday weekend. Who can foster this guy?”

A day later, Lori Hames, a local animal rescue volunteer, pulled him for Ruff Start Rescue after the dog passed a standard temperament test. Typically, dogs can be hyped up on release from the pound. Not this dog, though.

“He is the only dog I have pulled from a shelter who has taken a nap in my car immediately after getting out,” says Hames.

A RESCUED DOG, A RESCUED BOY

Initially, the dog went to stay with a foster family in St. Cloud. That home wasn’t a good fit, though. It had too many other animals, “small critters,” says Hames. Smith offered her quieter place as the dog’s next foster home. She picked up the dog Sept. 28, 2013, and renamed him TatorTot. He was still a puppy — and acted like it.

“He was super rambunctious, he didn’t want to sit still, and was all over the place,” Smith told the Pioneer Press in 2013. “I took him to the dog park and let him run around. When I brought him back home, that’s when he mellowed out. By that evening, I already had a feeling I wanted to keep him.”

Four days later, he started acting up again. The drama began at bedtime.

“I put my son to bed at about 8:30 in the evening,” Smith said during the 2013 interview. “He woke up between 12 and 1:30 to ask for something to drink. He was acting weird — really out of it. I chalked it up to being deliriously tired. I wasn’t too concerned.” However: “After putting Peyton back to bed, not even 20 minutes later, TatorTot began running back and forth from Peyton to me,” Smith says. “He was barking and acting like something was wrong. I was like, ‘What, didn’t you get enough exercise today? Come lay down, it’s bedtime.’ ”

“He didn’t let up.

“Finally, I went to check on my son. He was barely breathing. TatorTot was on his bed, barking and pawing at him, licking his face. Any normal child would have woken up. He wasn’t waking up.”

Smith was also unable to rouse her son. By then, she was terrified.

“I scooped him up and put him in the car and raced to the ER,” Smith says. “They had to give him a shot of something — I think it was adrenaline — to wake him up. They also ran a bunch of tests, which is when they discovered that he had super low glucose levels. They thought he could be diabetic. Peyton’s levels were so low that he could have had a seizure, or fallen into a coma, or even died,” Smith says. “Medical-alert dogs are not uncommon, but they usually have to undergo training. With TatorTot, I just got extremely lucky and blessed that he knew something was wrong.”

FROM DOGGIE DEATH ROW TO ‘RACHAEL RAY SHOW’

As the boy recovered, the good news spread: First, on social media in the local animal rescue community. Then, local media picked up on the story. As the story circled the globe via the internet, the dog’s “15 minutes of fame” included a story in dog behaviorist Cesar Milan’s magazine, “Cesar’s Way,” as well as a segment on the “Rachael Ray Show.” Ray, a pit bull advocate, invited Smith to New York to tell TatorTot’s story on television — and to gift TatorTot a year’s supply of food from her Nutrish dog label.

“It was overwhelming, to be honest,” says Smith of that phase. “All the calls, emails, comments on his Facebook page …”

Medical-alert dogs are not uncommon, but they usually have to undergo training. … I just got extremely lucky and blessed that he knew something was wrong.

She also had to deal with the backlash — hateful online comments directed toward her as well as her dog.

“People who discriminate against pit bulls like to terrorize those of us who don’t,” Smith says.

Meanwhile, Peyton underwent almost a year of medical testing, Smith says, with no real answers; fortunately, he is in good health. TatorTot never again alerted Smith like he did on that terrible night.

“It was the only time it ever happened,” says Smith.

GOODBYE

While TatorTot developed a loyal fan base on Facebook — his page has 18,716 likes — he went on to live a regular dog’s life. Until last August.

“I first noticed a lump under his chin,” says Smith.

The diagnosis: lymphoma. He began chemotherapy and other treatments but there was never much hope.

“As I understand it, lymphoma is harder to cure in dogs than it is in humans,” Smith says.

The dog persevered until last Friday, when he developed a mass under his shoulder and seemed to be fading.

“He started to get sluggish,” says Smith. “He was not acting like himself. His breathing seemed labored; he was sleeping a lot. By Sunday night, the mass had doubled in size. I honestly thought we were going to lose him on Sunday.”

On Monday, the dog was still alive.

Still, it was time to talk to Peyton.

“Before I took Peyton to school, I sat down with him and told him, ‘ToTs isn’t doing good. We have to take him to the vet; today might be the day he goes to heaven.’ He broke down and said, ‘I don’t want to lose my brother.’ ”

It was a long morning at the veterinarian’s office. Smith held her dog and said goodbye.

“I had to make the choice to send him over the Rainbow bridge … around the people that loved him most,” Smith wrote of her decision to the euthanize the dog.

A day later, Smith talked to the Pioneer Press as she clutched TaterTot’s favorite blanket.

“I can honestly say it was the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make,” she said, her voice full of emotion. “I feel like I have a gaping hole in my chest.”

At press time, Smith was considering different options for memorials, including asking for donations to animal rescue groups in ToT’s name. She was also planning a private “celebration of life,” a dinner with friends in which photos would be shared and tater tot casserole would be served. But she says she hopes that her dog’s enduring legacy will be this: “Never judge a book by its cover.”