Nimbus the Husky recovering after massive fall from cliff
Jun 26, 2025, 9:12 AM
A five-year-old Husky named Nimbus is receiving life-saving care at the Washington State Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Pullman after falling about 20 feet off a cliff. (Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
(Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
A five-year-old Husky named Nimbus is receiving life-saving care at the Washington State Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Pullman after falling about 20 feet off a cliff, following a run-in with a goat.
Now, her owner is sharing her story, in hopes it resonates with others who spend time outdoors with their pets.
The fall happened Saturday, while they were on a training run with friends in Teanaway.
“We had just reached the ridge,” Katie Warren told KIRO 7 News. “There’s a big snow patch, which she loves.”
Katie said Nimbus and another dog named Doug began playing in the snow together.
“They are together all the time at our races and everything. We call them ‘Dimbus’ as a couple, cause it’s Doug and Nimbus.”
As the group continued their run, something changed.
“I realized she wasn’t with Doug,” Katie told KIRO 7.
She checked her GPS collar and saw her a short distance away, near a big rock outcrop.
“If I see her alert to something, whether it’s a noise or a scent or something, she immediately goes back on a leash,” Katie said.
Nimbus had followed a goat into steep terrain.
“A bunch of rocks started falling,” Katie said. “It caught my attention. I looked up and she was just falling like through the air, backwards. And I didn’t even really register like the goat.”
Katie was in shock.
“My first thought was like; I just watched my dog die. And I screamed.”
Rocks were still falling as Katie made her way over to Nimbus, unsure what she’d find.
“She was sitting there at the top of the snow bank, and I’m like shaking and sobbing,” Katie told KIRO 7. “Did a little once over, and she stood up, which I was shocked.”
At this point, Katie’s friends came looking for her. Her partner, who is a firefighter, examined Nimbus for any signs of injury.
“No point tenderness, she didn’t like yelp or whine. So, we didn’t think there was any bone damage,” Katie said. “It wasn’t until I got her up on like my partner’s shoulders so he could start carrying her out that I realized she had a wound on her side.”
The group took turns carrying Nimbus the five miles to the parking lot.
They rushed her to a Cascade Veterinary Clinic in Wenatchee.
“They were amazing,” Katie told KIRO 7.
With Nimbus stable and in the care of a veterinarian staff, she and her partner made the trek back to get her car.
“By the time I got down right back into the service and my phone started ringing, that’s when she told me how bad Nimbus’ internal damage was, and that I had some hard decisions to make,” Katie said.
But it wasn’t a hard decision – it was a no-brainer for Katie.
“I’m going to do everything I can to save her.”
Nimbus made it through the night, but the next day her protein levels began to drop. Katie said that Nimbus had sepsis and a damaged pancreas. She needed a higher level of care.
“We’re really lucky in Washington,” she said. “I was just three and a half hours away from WSU.”
She got in her car and drove Nimbus straight to Pullman, where she’s currently receiving treatment.
Katie told KIRO 7 News that on Tuesday, she got a glimmer of hope. Nimbus ate a little bit of chicken, and her lab work is staying consistent.
“I just keep telling her that she’s such a tough girl,” Katie said. “She’s so spunky and has such a little attitude sometimes, and she is so stubborn and so I just, all those traits that can be so frustrating sometimes, I’m like lean into those girl, those are going to get you through.”
Katie said that she wants to be clear – she is not blaming the goat for what happened to Nimbus.
“I don’t want this to be like, ‘Oh, this vicious goat attacked her,’” Katie said. “It was her fault. It was my fault. And, um. you know, I’m going to carry that with me for a long time.”
She hopes that her story will serve as a reminder to treat wildlife with kindness.
“All wildlife should be respected,” she said.” They’re not out to get you, but they’re wild animals, and you’ve got to respect their space…Don’t blame them for being in their environment, and them just doing what they do.”
Katie also urges all pet owners to consider pet insurance.
“Just like with people, insurance only covers so much, but it is the difference between saving your animal and not.”
She also suggests having a group with you when spending time outdoors and bringing the proper gear.
“It was so helpful to have people with me,” she said. “And thinking about things that I carry under other circumstances. Like if I’m backpacking, I have a little sling that’s made specifically for evacuating your dog. But I just, you know, this was such a mundane, normal trail run for us that I just didn’t see it as necessary.”
Katie said she’s unsure how long Nimbus will be in 24-hour veterinary care, but she is grateful for those who are caring for her best friend.
“Their attitude and just their positive spirit and their support of me and my dog is just, I just can’t thank them enough.”
A friend has created a fundraiser for Katie to help offset the cost of the veterinary care for Nimbus. If you’d like to help, you can donate here.
Katie told KIRO 7 she’s trying to focus on moving forward and staying strong for Nimbus.
“There’s nothing you can say to me that I haven’t said to myself,” she said. “I’m beating myself up just as bad, because it’s my dog in there. It’s my best bud. I understand that I made a mistake, and I don’t think that it’s okay. Give me your best.”
