Gilbert, a golden retriever with a heart of gold and a tail that never stopped wagging, was never meant for the spotlight.
But he captured the hearts of everyone around him, including Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman.
Back in 2021, Hortman welcomed a pup into her home in 2021 as part of a service dog training program.
Trained through the nonprofit Helping Paws, Gilbert was supposed to become a highly focused support animal for someone in need. But he had other plans — plans that included snuggles, tail wags, and winning over anyone he met.
“A lot of dogs just want to be around people — all people,” explained Alyssa Golob, executive director of Helping Paws. “That’s a wonderful trait, but not ideal in service dogs, who need to focus on one person.”
Gilbert’s natural friendliness eventually got him “fired” from service dog duty — but that was a win for the Hortmans, who got to keep him as a full-time family dog.
Hortman had grown especially close to him during a difficult time, just after the January 6 Capitol attacks, the pandemic, and George Floyd’s murder.
“When she wanted a dog, because she was having a hard time, she didn’t just get a dog — she got a dog that she had to give away because it was a service animal,” said Rep. Zack Stephenson, speaking to the Star Tribune. “Classic Melissa.”
Despite his flunk-out from training, Gilbert still became a fixture at the State Capitol, often popping into Zoom meetings, barking or climbing onto Hortman’s lap.
“This was that one day when Gilbert was really well-behaved in class,” Hortman joked in a 2022 Facebook post, sharing a photo of the duo.
The Hortman family originally got involved with Helping Paws through a senior project by their daughter Sophie. When Sophie left for college, Hortman’s husband Mark stepped up to finish training their first dog, Minnie, a black Lab who eventually went on to help a veteran struggling with PTSD.
That veteran, Aric Elsner, says the dog changed his life: “After a few months of having the dog, though, I started to reconnect, getting out into the community, going to my kids’ stuff,” Elsner said. “She’s a life-changer for me and my family, and I’m just so thankful for Sophie and Mark and for Melissa.”
Gilbert’s story, however, took a heartbreaking turn. On June 14, Gilbert was seriously wounded in the same tragedy that took the lives of Rep. Hortman and her husband.
Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman and his wife were also injured in the shooting. The suspect, Vance Boelter, was captured Sunday night following a manhunt.
Sadly, the beloved pet died alongside his owners.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the tragic news of Gilbert’s passing. We can confirm that he did not survive the attack at the Hortman family’s home early Saturday morning,” Helping Paws shared on Facebook .
“He was with his people until the very end,” Alyssa Golob, executive director with Helping Paws, told KARE.
According to Rep. Erin Koegel, Gilbert was humanely euthanized by the couple’s adult children. During a Minnesota House safety briefing after the tragedy, the sergeant-at-arms informed members that Gilbert had to be put down.
“When I heard that Gilbert had passed, too, I just knew it was because Melissa needed him. She needed him with her,” Koegel said emotionally.
The bond between Hortman and Gilbert ran deep. When Gilbert was temporarily removed for a last-ditch effort at training, her colleagues conspired to bring him home. They even joked about slipping language into a tax bill demanding the revenue commissioner seize the dog and return him to Hortman. Another idea? Have the sergeant-at-arms fetch him like an absentee legislator.
“When he dropped out, I think that was probably her happiest moment of the whole training,” said Rep. Jamie Long. “She loved Mark Hortman, but the true love of her life was Gilbert.”
Golob noted that it takes a special kind of person to train a dog they might never keep: “Everyone gets through with their own mantra,” she said. “Some will say, ‘I want the dog, but they need the dog.’”
Now, to honor both the Hortmans and their lovable dropout-turned-family-member, Helping Paws is launching a new fund in their name. The initiative will support pairing service dogs with veterans and first responders suffering from PTSD.
Friendly to a fault, Gilbert may not have made it as a service dog — but in every other way, he was a hero.
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