Tornado, lost her brief battle with lymphoma on 6/2/2012 Named by my daughter eleven years ago when we rescued her from a shelter. Always running, playing,so smart and sweet. We miss her so much. She now runs with her best buddy Russell who has been waiting for her for 3 years. They will run and play together now forever.

— Toxie from Montague, TX

I rescued a female chihuahua and named her Holly Joy.  First thing I did was take her to the vet to be checked out.  She was eight years old born Nov. 2, 1999, the day before my birthday of Nov. 3.  The vet found out she had an enlarged heart which was pressing on her esophagus and also had congestive heart failure.  She had to take a diurretic and heart medication to keep her heart from enlarging any further.  She was very shy at first having lived in a concrete kennel for 8 years.  She and I soon became very close and she growled at anyone who came near me, however, having been bred so much she had lost all of her teeth and could not bite anyone.  Once my niece got close to me and Holly Joy grabbed her by the pants legs and tried to pull her away.  It was so funny.  She slept in a tiny bed placed between our pillows on the bed and always wanted to be covered by a blanket.  I always put dresses and sweaters on her and she walked around like she was a queen and in my heart and eyes she was a beautiful queen.  She always laid next to me on the loveseat and loved to held and kissed.  I never loved a dog as much as I grew to love her.  She created a space in my heart that can never be replaced.  Holly Joy went down quickly a couple of months ago.  She lost her sight and hearing, her legs were so weak she could not stand very long.  We had to feed her on a towel as she could no longer get her food out of her bowl. I was determined not to euthanize her as I had convinced myself it was like lethal injection for criminals.  However, last Saturday Feb. 4, 2012, I could not stand seeing her so weak and sick.  She walked in circles and then would stop and just put the top of her head on the floor as if she just didn’t know what to do.  I started crying and told my husband it was time to let her go.  He called the Burleson Animal ER here in Texas and they told us to come in 30 minutes.  I wrapped her in a blanket and held her and kissed her, telling her how  much I loved her and always would.  When we got to the ER they took us into a private room to spend some last time with her.  The doctor came in and told us what they would do and let them know when we were ready.  We didn’t take a long time as I was almost crying hysterically.  They came and got her so they could sedate her and put an IV in her little tiny legs and then brought her back to us.  I wrapped her in her blanket and put my head on hers talking to her even though she was deaf, while the vet began giving her the medicines to stop her heart.  It only took a minute or so and she was gone.  The vet then said we could hold her and when we were ready to leave they would come get her.  She was so peaceful looking but I was torn up inside.  We let them take her to have her cremated and have her ashes give back to us.  We are now waiting for the vet to call and tell us her ashes are there to be picked up.  My heart is still broken and I hesitated to read your book, but I needed to know other people go through this heartbreak too.  I just finished reading your book Rescuing Sprite.  I know exactly how broken your heart was and I am so glad you adopted another pet to be loved and cared for like no one else could do. However, unlike you, I had to get another dog right away to ease my pain.  We now have a 1-1/2 year old female chihuahua named Foxie and she has already accepted us, but mostly she only wants me, just like Holly Joy did.  I already love her so much and she is slowly getting over her shyness.  I read some of the negative feedback some people wrote and I feel sorry for them that will never know the love we have known.   That unconditional love is the way we should all love, but some of choose not to.  God’s love is unconditional and I like to say God spelled backwards is dog and when Adam in the Garden of Eden named animals, he also saw that unconditional love and called them a dog, spelling God’s name backwards. I still cry and my heart still aches, but I am beginning to accept that euthanasia was the only decision I could have made to bring her suffering to an end.

— Helen from Crowley, TX

Mark, I’ve read your book many times and then passed it onto my mom to read. I read it again last night and broke my heart. One sentence said it all “I bought him home” That’s how I felt when I held the box containing my boy Max’s ashes nearly 3 years ago. He lived to a great age for a German Shepherd, 13 but I couldn’t see him suffer any longer. I still live with the guilt about making the decision to end his beautiful life and the fear he had in his eyes. I too examined every part of him, his beautiful big ears, his poorly hind legs, his paws to make sure I never forgot what they felt like. I mixed his ashes with some of my dad’s and they have pride of place in my living room. I just wish I could have done the same for the dog I had before Max. He was “Big Max” another German Shepherd, a Crufts winning descendent who was killed when he was just 2 1/2. He was just so big,gentle and beautiful. The kids used to take a detour so they could come and fuss him. Of course he lapped it up! These 2 amazing souls bought so much unconditional love, happiness, comfort and wisdom to me and I was so  blessed to be “chosen” by them. One day I hope to be chosen again, a little old doggy who needs some love and cuddles before he  goes to good old doggy heaven! Thank you so much Mark for sharing your story and you will never know how many people you’ve helped. God Bless all the dogs who are just waiting for their “Forever Homes”

— Rae from West Midlands, UK

My daughter had a dog she picked up at the pound, His name was Ryes, (reese). As you can see, a gangly dog with a personality that was almost human, so it seemed. My daughter moved out, and I inherited Ryes. It always amazed me, I would pull in the driveway, everyday, there he was, smiling. Yep, smiling, a ear to ear smile. I was so heart warming to come home to a empty house, except for Ryes. Ryes and Riley, my other, older dog, every morning when I would get up, let them out, and they would head to the river for their morning stretch. As i would be about ready to head to work, I would look toward the river and they would be on their way back. One saturday morning, they went the other way. Ryes was hit by a car. I could never understand why they went the other way that morning. the only solice I can come up with to this day, is that I gave Ryes the best 8 months of his short life. I do live out in the country, room for the dogs to roam. I am sure some would say that I should have kept them in a fence or tied up. But what life is that. The fact that Ryes lost his life on my watch is something I will bear for the rest of my life. As I picked him up, prepared to bury him, and then on through the following week, all I could think was, if this is this hard, to lose a dog, how on earth can a parent lose a child. It was simply unbearable. As I listened to your show, and your relations with your dogs, and taking time off the show to tend to your dogs and their situations, I could truly relate. I could understand that it was not just me, there are others out there that have the same feelings toward their dogs and pets also. I am 51, I never really let much in the way of death effect me too much, animals, people. But this one, I think made me human, humbled me. When I die, go to Heaven, and see the Lord, the only question I will have, is where is Ryes.

— Brett from Wenatchee, WA

My beautiful beloved Dalli, a stunning 12 yr old Border Collie died today, on my 51st birthday. He had sinus tumors that I thought I could beat with Homeopathy and husband and I were just talking last night about how Dalli looked much stronger than the previous months. He was diagnosed in Oct, and I have been crying almost everyday since, but tried to have hope, think + thoughts and pray so hard so often, for a miracle. I just wanted 1 measly miracle in my life.
Today I woke up and he jumped on my bed to say good morning and started seizing. The seizures didn’t stop for a couple hours until a vet arrived at our house to put Dalli down. It was the most horrible moment of my life. I put my face close to his, to breathe in his last breaths and have him breathe in mine. Ironic, but Dalli hadnt “kissed” me for months, I don’t know why, he was being a stinker, but he kissed me this morning early. It was a beautiful gift. Our hearts are broken beyond words now. My grief is so deep. I cant go in my bedroom where his bed is. My husband and I made a promise to each other that we would never let a human hand take his life, but we did. I feel so awful, and no matter what anyone says, all the cliche’s: He’s in a better place”, “You’ll see him again someday”, “you did the right thing”, etc…I cant believe any of it. Nothing makes me feel better. I never wanted to be without him, and for the past decade, there were times that I heard a sad song and would cry thinking about having to face this day,  I don’t know how people can do this owning dogs over and over again.  Well Mark, I just wanted to post a tribute to my precious Border Collie Dalli, the most wonderful and perfect dog that ever graced this planet. He never did anything wrong and was so easy to own. I loved him more than any living creature on earth, even more than my parents or husband, and he was taken from me. But he will never be taken from my heart or mind. I asked him to be the 1st face I see when I pass into the light someday.I can only hope and pray that it is true that we see them again. So devastated….

— Alli from Nampa, ID

I got Bonnie from my car mechanic as soon as she was weened. Our bond was very strong. We were always together.

She was extremely intelligent. She was a puppy when I held a cordless phone up to her ear. She looked surprised to hear a voice on it. She went immediately to a radio sitting on the floor and put her mouth on it to show me she knew what the phone was. A radio!

She had a bone cancer and by the time it was discovered it was inoperable. I grieved for her more I ever grieved over anyone. Buy I console myself with the fact that I gave her everything I could and she had a good life for her seven years. I know she has gone to her next life and maybe we will meet again some day.

— Robert from Escondido, CA