Mark, I recently finished reading Rescuing Sprite and was very moved by it. I recently had to put down my Rottweiler,”MIKE” on DEC. 2, 2007,after 12 1/2 years of loyal and faithful companionship. I agree with so many of your thoughts in your book. I am very thankful that you did decide to write this book.
I am also a very big fan of your show!! I appreciate every thing that you do for us conservatives.
GOD BLESS, keep up the fight.

Jim from OH

I have loved and lost too many to tell about here – seven of my best friends took their last breaths in my arms.

After discovering that I had cancer, I decided to follow my passion and I began volunteering with a dog rescue organization. I believed it might help to save my life, as well as the precious lives of other dogs. That was six years ago.

I have fostered many and cried when each one moved on to their forever home. Some were so battered and old by the time that they came to me, that I became their last stop on earth. They deserved better than to have been dumped at kill shelters just because they had medical problems in their twighlight years. I loved each one as if they had always been with me and each left a hole in my heart that can never be filled. Luckily my heart still has room for others to find their own special place.

I now have just three babies remaining – an 18+ old 5 lb. poodle named Rocky, who is deaf and nearly blind and requires heart medication, an 8 year old 17 lb. cockapoo puppy mill girl named Candi who was terrifed of being touched for more than two years after we rescued her. She is still very fearful, but snuggles with us when the lights go out at night. My third little boy, Snowphish, is around six and suffers from neurological disorders that cause him to spin and attack himself. I’ve been working with him for two years and he may never be completely rid of his demons, but he now enjoys lots of loving moments just snuggling in my arms or doing “puppy zooms” through the house.

Thank you, Mark, for saving and loving Sprite. I hope your book will inspire others to turn to a rescue group to find their next “family member”.

Linda from GA

I am presently reading Rescuing Sprite.I also had a precious friend,a Shih Tzu named Brandi. I got her when she was 6 weeks old.An endearing memory of her was when my husband died in l998, she cuddled near me as I cried.As she got around 13,her eyesight started to fade,she relied on my more and stayed very close to me.

At 14 yrs.old I felt a lump on her stomach,the vet confirmed it was cancer,plus she had a heart murmer,the worst it gets.We decided that because of her heart she may not survive surgery for the tumor.So I decided to let her live her last days as she was.She turned 15,on this past Ocy.6,2007 and it was shortly after I had to face that awful day.

That weekend she had been moaning because the tumor was getting uncomfortable for her.So,Monday morning I had to make that call,I wasn’t going to see her suffer anymore.That was the hardest thing I think I’ve ever done.She was my buddy,my loyal friend!

Cheryl from NC

On 3/11/07 I had to say goodbye to my best buddy, Bambi. She was a 7 yr old Papillon. I got her a few years after a painful divorce because I was lonesome, ornery, and mean. I figured getting a dog would be a good way to mellow me out again. I had a very hard time adjusting to a new “person” in my life and at times it wasn’t easy. Bambi sometimes got some harsh treatment from me, which she didn’t deserve, the first few months I had her.

I am ashamed to admit that one day I almost beat her to death becuase I was so angry. Angry at her, myself, the world. After I realized what I had almost done, I was so ashamed I wanted to die. However, that event was a major turning point in my life when I realized how bitter I had become. She recovered in a matter of moments, and i cried for I don’t know how long. I never beat her again after that, and we became fast friends. She got cancer in november of 2006 and I spent hundreds of dollars trying to make her well. I finally had to put her down, and believe me, I was a basket case for two weeks.

I had her cremated on her 8th birthday, 4/18/07. She was a God send. My family eventually could see the change she had made in my life. I am no longer the bitter, angry old man I once was and the credit goes to a little dog who changed my life. I have 2 chihuahuas and a pekinese/shi tzu mix who live with me now, but I think about “Bambino Tortellini ” everday and still have a crying jag once and awhile, like as I am typing this.

Thanx for the good work you do, Mark, and may God richly bless you and your family.

Warm regards,
Mark from SD

Mark:
I just finished reading your book, which was a gift from my sister for Christmas. She wrote a funny passage in it: “Sis, for all those days you wish you hadn’t.” We adopted a sweet and very timid black, lab mix from our local shelter. He was due to be put down in a week and something in my heart just said we need to see this dog. He was to be a companion to our other dog, Rocky, who we love more than life itself. The shelter had given him the name “Fred” so to not confuse or scare him more; we left it at “Fred.” He is great with Rocky and us, but scared of everything else. He has destroyed one new pair of shoes and his hair is everywhere, but we love him and we know that we did the right thing by taking a chance on him.

I never thought that I could love an animal as much as I love these two dogs and in the last two years, I have lost three of my beloved cats due to old age. Rocky is our “Sprite” and at six years of age, I am hoping that we have many more years together. Fred is only two, so we will cherish our time with both. There were so many similarities between your situation and ours. Thank you for sharing your story with us. I enjoyed the book immensely.

Laura from VA

I read your book this weekend crying through the first half and sobbing at the end. Sprite and my (late) Sadie could have been siblings. I was Sadie’s Mom for 16 years (from 6 weeks) until January 21, 2005.

Kathryn from GA