One killed my bird dog named “Molly” a few years back. She was a Brittany Spaniel that LOVED the woods as well as the water. This incident happened behind my church where I was clearing vegetation. I still see the visuals effects of the gator rolling with her. It was fifteen feet in front of me. I was tossing a ball in the lake so she would have something to do while I worked. I was watching out for alligators coming across the top of the lake. This one came up from the bottom, and when he surfaced, he was two feet off her backside. There was nothing I could do but cry, It happened so fast. I felt so helpless. (more…)

Dear Mark: I just finished reading your book…and wow, I have not cried like that in many years. Like many of your readers, I lost a dog to a tragic car accident nearly twenty years ago and I still think about about him often and wonder about all the years of joy that I missed out on because of making one horrible bad decision. It still haunts me to this day, as it will the rest of my life. The good news is that I have two incredible Jack Russell Terriers that are the best dogs in the world. One of them is a rescue dog and I marveled at the similarities between him and your dog Sprite. It amazes me how they show how appreciative they are of you nearly every minute they are by your side. I wanted to thank you for sharing your story with the world. You and your family have a special place reserved in heaven for the help you are giving to dogs in need and the human lives you are touching with your story. I’m sure it is helping anyone that has ever had a special bond with a pet and has had to say good-bye to them, for whatever reason. As you are no doubt finding out, there are A LOT of us out there.

As for me, you have inspired me to write a book about my two best buddies and whether it makes one dollar, or 5 million, I will be sharing the proceeds with organizations that help animals in need. As you originally thought about your book, I can’t imagine anyone will want to read about me and my dogs, but it will be fun for me to write and will be a tribute to all the wonderful pets out there that enrich our lives more than just about anything else in this world can. I mean this next statement from the bottom of my heart and with all the sincerity that I have in my soul: God bless you and your family, Mark…and everyone else out there that gives a pet a loving home and tries to take care of them as they deserve to be taken care of. All of my best.

Tony from IN

Bart and Moose

I met Barn-dog over 2 years ago through an internet adoption site. At the time, I was quite leary about taking on the responsibility of dog ownership.
However, I was lured in, by a good friend, into a search for a puppy that she wanted to bring home. We spent a few weeks searching websites for puppies in our area.
An unfruitful search for her, became a wonderful journey for me.
I stumbled upon www.citypetrescue.com, an organization based in Dallas, TX that takes in dogs and cats who have lost their home. Enter Barney.
I fell in love with his disproportionately large black nose that overshadowed his matted grey hair. There he was, looking more pathetic than anything should be allowed to look. (more…)

Today my dog died(Sat 16th of Feb, 2008) I studied theology in Bible School so I can safely say I have no Scripture to support my notion that I will meet my dog again one day

Callie was an eleven year old Golden Lab. She was an enormous blessing to our family and never, not once, did she bear her teeth or even snap at anyone.

She would lie at my feet and rest her head on my foot. I would go to the bathroom and when I got out, she would be there. She had a very comfortable bed downstairs but most nights she slept outside our room.

About a year ago her back legs started to go. We put her on a certain drug and it really helped for a while. Then several months ago she developed a lump on her front right leg. After tests it was determined to be cancer.

The vet said that the only solution was to amputate, but given the condition of her back legs, it was not really viable. So the lump grew rapidly until it was the size of a watermelon.

She was never in any pain, and her never ending tail continued wagging as it always had. She now went into the front yard to go to the bathroom, as she could not make the stairs at the back. Eventually she needed help getting up the front two steps.

This last week she lost interest in food. Not usual for Callie at all. I knew the time was very near to make the call. I made the decision on Friday and we called the vet to set up the appointment.

On Friday evening I took her out into the front yard for the last time. As I stood on the porch, she hobbled over to the paper that was in the driveway. Did I mention that my dog was the smartest dog in the sub-division? The envy of all the other men as she would collect my paper? (more…)

For her last two nights I stayed up with her. Every so often she would begin a desperate but futile struggle to stand, he legs too tired to lift herself up. I would pick up her hind quarters with a towel slung under her belly, and allow whatever was fighting inside her to get out and on to the training pad spread on the floor. We could usually use the training pad twice before discarding it. We went through three packs of six.

Angel lay all night on the floor with one of our son’s t-shirts to keep her company. We both were able to sleep from 1 until 5am.

Our daughter and her husband came to spend last night with us. My wife left for Florida yesterday to be with her ailing father, and I expected to be here alone. Our daughter refused to go to the Vet with us, and had a good cry this morning. Her husband helped me carry the dog to the car, where Angel laid quietly in the back seat. Talked to my Dad last night and he told me about making the same trip with one of our family dogs (Hazel, a Cock-a-Poo (however it is you spell it)). Hazel somehow figured out what was going on and decided to go down fighting. Not so with Angel.

They set up a bed in the examining room where we placed Angel, now wrapped in various towels and plastic sheets. She lay there quietly, even dozing off as we waited for the Vet, a very nice lady, probably around 30 and very kind. She explained the procedure to me and administered the medication as Angel watched. She lay her head down between her paws with her eyes half closed, her nose over the edge of the bed, and was gone in a matter of seconds.

I stayed with her for a few minutes and cried a lot more than I thought I would. Took me about 10 minutes just to be able to walk out and say a quick good-bye to the staff (and I understood why they had me take care of the paperwork first – it was impossible now).

Thank God I had someone were waiting for me when I got home. We sat and talked for hours, sharing memories of Angel, discussing our son’s future in the Army and our daughter’s new job. We went to Bethlehem PA for lunch, where we stopped by a book store where I bought Rescuing Sprite.

Can’t recommend it too much – our experiences and feelings matched to a ‘T’. Thanks to Mark for putting it into words for all of us.

Picture is of Angel between her close friends Dylan and Freddie.

Dave from PA

I had a black lab name Ruby, I had her since i was a year old until i was about 9 years old. I loved this dog, she was very people and animal friendly, never barked, very smart. She always looked out for me and followed me around and protected me. when i was at cabin with my family at the lake, i was about 4 or 5, i would wander off of the property, Ruby would follow me along to make sure i got back to the cabin safety. I just kinda followed Ruby cuz i was soo little, i sometimes forget how to get back. I loved Ruby very much. We always had good times together. sadly she died when i was about 9 years old cuz of stomach problems.
today i have a mini dachshund, his name is Frankie. here is his link i made for my dog. http://www.dogster.com/dogs/2248
here is my vlog site i made, http://chillygurlz.wordpress.com/

Rita from NE