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Mia

Mark, I have just finished reading your book about your beloved Sprite. It is heartbreaking and triumphant at the same time. I. too am currently wrestling with the life changing decision of when is the “right” time to end the life of a beloved friend. Her name is Mia and she was a shelter dog–just like Sprite. She was adopted by my parents while they were on a vacation to the Ozark Mountains. At the time of her adoption, we were told that her age was probably about two years. So that would make her now about 14 or15 years old. Her muzzle is gray and the hair on her ears is tinged with gray. Her vision and hearing are not good and she has arthritis iin her hips and legs. Some (most) days,I have to help her get up and have to direct her outside to do her business. She is –technically–my parents dog–but in her heart–and mine–I believe she has always considered herself an extension of me. I live about 30 miles from my parents and am their caregiver and that also includes helping with the pets that are as much a part of the family as the human members. Mia has always loved babies and as she never–as far as we know–had any of her own– every human baby she has ever seen has been hers. She nuzzles and licks and when they cry, she will immediately go to an adult to seek assistance. She has protected my daughter on many occasions from what she has perceived as a threat and , at one time, almost had a fight with an Airedale that she thought got too close to the stroller in which her human baby was riding. There are too many memories and not enough room to write them all.
Our vet has told us–as yours has–that we will know when it is time. And I wonder if I am prolonging this for me or for her. Every once in a while, I see that old spark or hear in her bark that old livliness and –once again–I think “Just a little longer”.
Thank you for sharing your joy–and your pain. It is a wonderful book and I intend to pass it around to our entire family. I bought it originally for my mother, but it will go alot further than that.Thank you, Thank you . Cherish your days with Pepsi and Griffen and Roll Tide.

Ann Marie from AL