It is so very nice to know that there are so many people who love their family members who happen to be dogs, as much as we do. We have adopted many dogs, and through the years have grieved beyond belief when they have passed on to “dog heaven.” Barbie, our pit bull, haad been shot and stabbed and we adopted her from the local shelter when she was just 7 months old. She has turned out to be a wonderful friend plus is gentle and loving to everyone!

Patricia from CA

Dear Mark,

It’s 10:00pm Christmas Eve, I received your book Rescuing Sprite this morning as a gift from my father, I just finished it. First I want to give my condolences to you and your family on the loss of your family member Sprite. I say a family member because we dog lovers know it’s never just a pet, but a very special addition to the family.

About five years ago we lost my “sister” her name was Midnight we had her for 17 years ( and it still wasn’t long enough). She was brought into our home when I was three years old, I never knew life before her and that she is gone a part of me will never be the same. She was the sweetest, most affection dogs I’d had ever seen. When I was little, she was so calm she used to let me paint her nails, I always wanted a sister and since I didn’t have one, she was forced to walk around with bright red nails. She slept on the edge of my bed every night. The day she passed was very unusual for some reason my entire family was home, except my father who was working. We noticed Midnight was acting strange, so she called my father home and he scooped her up and ran her to the vet. By the time she was put on the table she was gone. We believe she waited to go until she could be with dad. When my father came home he was clearly upset, but I never saw him cry before. My mother was screaming in disbelief and my father was inconsolable. She was his best fiend. For 17 years he never needed an alarm clock, she woke him up every morning at 5:30am( even on the weekends too), they had breakfast together and then she would go back to sleep for th day until he returned. I never thought that losing her would hurt so much, but it’s undescribable.

We adopted her from a shelter and have since again adopted another dog, her name is Jessie and she fills our home with so much love and laughter. This morning she opened all her own gifts, ripping the paper off each one. It was so wonderful for our family to be together laughing with this wonderful addition to our family. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for writing g this loving, companionate book. Today you made me feel the presence of my dear “sister” Midnight. I miss her dearly, but know I know she has a friend Sprite up there to play with in doggy heaven.

April from NJ

Today is Christmas Day and I finished reading your book. Needless to say, I had a box of tissues next to me almost all the time. There are many dogs out there that were abandoned by their owners just because they did not know how to properly train them and take care of them. Seeing that you had a dog that grew up in your household and then rescued another one pretty much reminds me of what we did.

Both my husband and I always talked about getting a dog. One year after we bought our house, in 2005, we were deciding on the breed when our friend let us know that his Dam, Sable, was pregnant. She had a litter of 8 puppies in June and our friend let us choose one. Sable and Syrus (the Sire) were purebred Siberian Huskies, dark gray, black and white with blue eyes. We saw the puppies the day after they were born and noticed this one apart from the litter, with a big butt. I wanted to know what it was and asked it to turn around. It did not take long for the puppy to turn on its back with its legs up in the air (I think coincidence played a bigger role on this one). I just thought that was adorable and asked our friend to keep an eye on her until we decided. Every time we went back to check on them, this puppy would walk towards us and follow us everywhere in the house. Two months later, Fiona came home with us. (more…)

Dear Mark ~ I recently had to put my dog, Jake, to sleep. Someone told me about your book, which was the only thing I asked for Christmas. I received and read it today. I laughed and I bawled. It was my favorite gift. I thank you for putting into words the things I have been feeling for six weeks. I thank you for not making my grief over my dog feel silly. Thank you for sharing your sad story. God bless you, Kendall, Lauren, Chase, Pepsi and Griffen.
Love,

Alice from GA

I am not sure if I can get through this story in one attempt but I am going to give it a try. My family lost our dog Ranger on December 13th. We believe she was 16 years old but we never knew for sure as my father in law found her in the woods on a hunting trip many years ago. The name Ranger came from my 16 year old son Tate who named her Ranger after the Power Rangers show he use to watch when he was two to three years old. Ranger came to live with us in 2001 when my mother-in-law was diagnosed with Breast Cancer, and with the weekly hospital visits for chemotherapy my in-laws were no longer able to watch her and giver her the attention she needed.

When Ranger was brought to live with us in Atlanta in 2001 I was not sure I wanted a dog, but as a “right thing to do” I reluctantly agreed to let Ranger come live with us. After a few months of getting use to the new addition to our family I became emotionally attached to Ranger and she became one of the family and I found myself becoming so attached that everyday she was with us was met with unconditional love.

Ranger went from living outdoors, sleeping in a dog house with a light to keep her warm at night to a full fledged in door dog who did not like to go outside if the grass was wet to use the bathroom. (more…)

Dear mark i am a over the road truckdriver and enjoy yor show very much and it is very educational not to mention eye opening.But many days I have to turn the show off,as it is very hard to drive when there are tears in my eyes. My story is about a very energetic boxer named casey. She belonged to friend who didn’t give her the attention she needed.One day he called me and asked me if I wanted her ,of course i said yes. He told me to have her gone before he got home that day. Iwent to pick her up,she had never been out the front door,when I let her out she ran up and down the street and I couldn’t begin to catch her.I opened the door of my truck and she jumped in. At that time I thought it would be a good time to inform my wife about the additon to our family.She did not share my love for my new dog. My wife vowed she would not let casey in the house or ride in the car with her. But that soon changed as casey could melt the hardest heart and she did on many occasions.She brought so much joy to my life and helped though some very hard times.

When she got sick it was very hard .I knew what needed to be done but my wife said she be better in the spring.But as spring turned in to summer she did not get better. One day i came home and she was out in the yard, she came in the house to greet me as she always did. Little did i know it would be the last time. She colapsed in the floor and couldn’t get up. I knew what I had to do.I took her to the vet,they came out to my truck to get her but I wouldn’t let them . I carried her inside and sat in the kennel with her and cried over her because she had become my best friend. Her last movement was to lick the the tears from my face,I guess it was her way of telling me it was ok.That was the second hardest day of my life,I didn’t lose my dog I lost my best friend and a member of my family. I know have another boxer and a lab. but they don’t compare to casey.

Jim from MO