I had given my daughter a purebred Siberian husky for her 16th birthday—the only pet we ever purposed to get, all the others over the years have been strays or giveaways. We named her “Nika” and had her for several years. Unfortunately, she died quite suddenly, which left an “opening” in our family. About a week after Nika’s passing, my sister called to see if we were ready for another family member. Seemed her next-door neighbors’ 10-year-old Weimaraner—“Spike”—was in need of a home. Spike’s then family had kept this male purebred locked in a backyard dog run since he was a puppy, and more times than not they forgot to feed and water the poor animal. Over the years, my sister checked on Spike occasionally and that last time, when he raised his head at her calling, the look in his eyes broke her heart. She related later that she burst into tears because she could tell his spirit had been completely broken and she doubted that he would last much longer. Then she heard that we’d lost Nika, so after letting us have a week’s mourning period, she couldn’t stand it any longer and gave us a call. Ordinarily, we wouldn’t have been ready for a replacement after such a short period, but under the circumstances, we relented and allowed her to go speak to her neighbor, who said we could take him. So the next night my daughter and I drove to my sister’s and picked up Spike—whom we renamed Kaiser (a more fitting name, I thought, for a German!). (more…)

Just finished reading “Rescuing Sprite” and as I suspected, it was a “half a box of kleenex” type book. I had seen your interview before Christmas on Hannity and Colmes and asked my husband to get it for me for Christmas. Because of a loss of one of my favorite pets last April, I had not been able to read it until this week and I LOVE IT !!!!!!! What a touching love story, one I can really relate to as I love my pets the very same way….. totally. I loved my dog more than I love most humans. Buddy was a pound puppy who found his way into my car and heart 12 years ago. He was half boxer and half dalmation and was a love. Even though he dug and chewed his way through my home, yard and heart at first, once he grew up, we were fast friends. His death last April was similar to Sprite’s… the hour for the appointment approached and I faced it with dread. It was the most difficult decision I have had to make. His remains are stuffing a counted cross stitch pillow I have worked on for 10 years. Its made from a favorite photo of him on our bed. His companion and my husband’s dog, Casey, a dalmation also had to be put down a week after Buddy and she has a photo pillow too, hers is done comercially. They are on the couch in the guest room and I still hug them often. It takes a real dog-lover to understand all that we go through in this process. Thanks for making it so special for folks.

Nora from CA

Raya was my best friend and constant companion for 11 years. She was 14 years old when I had to put her to sleep last May. She was born on New Year’s Day 1993, and my mom raised her for her first three years. I brought her to live with me when she was three, and we stayed together until she passed. I miss her every single day.

After she died, I wrote some down some things that I remember about her. I guess it was somewhat cathartic, but I also didn’t want her to go unremembered. Here are some of my best memories of her.

Puppyhood:

When she was a puppy, she would stand on her hind legs against the gate to the kitchen whining and crying until I would pick her up like a baby, thumbs under her front legs and hands around her ribcage. If you picked her up and cradled her, she would grunt like a pig.

Once we fed her burrito meat. She had just eaten dinner and her belly was bulging. With the burrito meat inside her, her belly was so distended that she could barely sit upright. But she just kept on begging for more, rocking from side to side.

When we bathed her in the kitchen sink, she would whine and cry like we were torturing her. When she was too big for the sink, Mom bathed her outside. Mom went to a block party later and heard someone talking about the poor abused dog that was always crying. Since she bathed Raya fairly frequently, she knew exactly which dog the neighbor was talking about.

After she outgrew her first kennel, Raya’s bed was a pallet under the built-in desk in the kitchen. She soon discovered the joys of scraping the wallpaper off the wall with her claws. Mom had to re-wallpaper under the desk. (more…)

“NUBS”…SOUNDS LIKE A FUNNY NAME, DOESN’T IT?? I HEARD ABOUT THIS DOG THIS MORNING (2/22/08) ON A MPLS. NEWS STATION…YOU ALL WILL BE AWESTRUCK WHEN YOU HEAR ABOUT HIM…..
APPARENTLY ONE OF OUR SOLDIERS IN IRAQ DISCOVERED A DOG, WHICH LOOKED TO BE AN OFF WHITE / TAN GERMAN SHEPHERD, IN SOME CITY OUR TROOPS WERE OCCUPYING. (THE STORY DID NOT MENTION IF HE WAS ONE OF OUR MILITARY DOGS.)THE DOG HAD BEEN TORTURED AND LEFT TO SUFFER AND DIE. HE HAD BEEN STABBED IN HIS STOMACH WITH A SCREWDRIVER, AND BOTH OF HIS EARS HAD BEEN CUT OFF, DOWN TO ABOUT ONE INCH LONG…TO WHERE THE CARTLIDGE BEGINS.
THE SOLDIER TOOK THE POOR DOG, NURSED HIM BACK TO HEALTH, AND BECAUSE OF HIS LITTLE EARS, HE LOVINGLY NAMED HIM “NUBS” .

WHEN THE TROOPS HAD TO MOVE ON TO ANOTHER AREA IN IRAQ, THE SOLDIER WAS FORCED TO LEAVE “NUBS” BEHIND. (THE NEWS STORY DIDN’T MENTION WHO “NUBS” WAS LEFT WITH.) THE TROOPS WERE SENT MORE THAN 70 MILES AWAY, BUT “NUBS” TOOK OFF , THROUGH WAR-TORN AREAS AND DESERT LANDS, AND TRACKED DOWN HIS LIFE-SAVING NEW MASTER !!
IT’S TRUE!!! “NUBS” TRACKED HIM DOWN, MORE THAN 70 MILES, AND SHOWED UP TO WHERE THE TROOPS HAD BEEN RELOCATED !!!
(I HAD TO USE THREE TISSUES WHEN I HEARD THIS!!)

THE SOLDIER WAS ABLE TO ARRANGE TO HAVE “NUBS” FLOWN BACK TO THE UNITED STATES, AND YESTERDAY HE ARRIVED AT THE MPLS/ST. PAUL AIRPORT IN A HUGE WIRE CAGE!! A FRIEND OF THE SOLDIER WILL CARE FOR HIM UNTIL HIS NEW MASTER COMES HOME NEXT MONTH, IN MARCH! THE NEWS CREW WAS AT THE AIRPORT, AND REALLY GOT SOME GREAT LIVE FOOTAGE OF THIS INCREDIBLE DOG, AND THE CLOSEUPS OF HIS FACE AND BIG BROWN EYES WERE HEART-WRENCHING. HE WAS CALM, BUT SEEMED A BIT CONFUSED.

PLEASE PRAY WITH ALL YOUR HEARTS AND SOULS THAT THIS SOLDIER ARRIVES SAFELY HOME NEXT MONTH SO THAT THEY CAN BE REUNITED AND LIVE TOGETHER THE REST OF THEIR LIVES!!

BY THE WAY, YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO FIND THE STORY AT THE TV STATION’S WEB SITE. I DO NOT HAVE IT, HOWEVER THE STATION IS “KMSP FOX CHANNEL 9 “, SO GIVE IT A TRY IF YOU CAN….YOU SHOULD SEE A PICTURE OF “NUBS”.

Christine from MN

My dog, Blackjack, cracks me up. He’s a rescue Dalmatian, about 7 years old. He was covered in chemical burns when he was taken from a shelter by the rescue group, and he was in the rescue for about a year before I adopted him. He is tremendously entertaining when he dreams. I used to let him sleep on the floor in my bedroom, but he runs full-tilt and sometimes even barks in his sleep, which isn’t helpful when you’re already a raging insomniac. When he stretches while lying on his side, his legs stick out straight in the air and don’t settle back to the ground for a good two minutes. They’re just out there, floating in the air, ramrod straight.

Blackjack is a big fan of flies. He likes to sit next to the French door, and when a fly finally gets stuck in that lowest window, the sound of his jaw repeatedly snapping shut reverberates throughout the room. Luckily, he also disposes of said flies.

The other day I asked him if he wanted to help me get the groceries out of the trunk. He trotted merrily to the car, and when I patted the bumper to show him where the groceries were, he gamely jumped into the trunk and stayed there, a spotted sentry, until all the groceries were unloaded. Not really helpful, but definitely funny. (more…)

One spring day a few years ago, I was on my way to the home of some friends and took a country road and sure enough, a terrier was running down the side of the road. I picked him up and went from house to house, trying to find the owner to no avail. I took him to the vet and the dog had not been neutered and needed another operation. The vet said he had been dumped. This Yorkie mix, “Hoosier,” and I are buddies and the relationship is unreal. I grew up with pets but never had such a relationship with an animal. In time, I decided Hoosier needed a canine pal in the house so I got “Emma Mae” from a breeder. The two are now like brother and sister but at first, I thought I had betrayed Hoosier. In time, the decision was right. I had no clue the human, canine bond could be this tight. What I absolutely can not fathom is the notion of euthanizing a dog for any reason. Perhaps I have a lot to learn, but it won’t happen here, no matter what. “Rescuing Sprite” is an incredible story but can anyone enlighten me as to how putting a dog to sleep is the right thing to do?

Father William from IN