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Listener Stories

Gina

We have rescued all of our animals. We have Gina who is Shepard/Husky cross. She was born in the projects and her sister was killed when she was kicked down the stairs. Fortunetly we got Gina before she met the same fate. She is the very best dog I could ever hope for. Then we found Charlie. He is a little bitty Lhasa Apso that was found by a friend wandering her neighborhood in an ice storm. We have had him for three years and he and Gina are the best of friends. Our last rescue was our horse, Scooter. He is a five year old Quarter Horse that was surely on his way to the meat factory because of a bad foot. We have had him for a year and he is truly my best friend. We have worked with his foot intensely and now he is fine and I ride him all the time. Thank you Mark for your book. I can’t wait to read it.

Kathy from CT

Casey

My first baby…Casey…came into my life in December of 1991. I fell in love with her at first sight. My soon to be husband told me we couldn’t have a puppy now…too many things going on. Little did I know that he planned on surprising me with her 6 weeks later on my birthday!

Casey was an extremely loyal and loving dog. She tangled with a racoon and nearly died. While recovering at the vet she wasn’t eating…the vet was perplexed…we told him that we trained her only to eat from us. He didn’t believe it. We went over and gave her the food and she gobeled it up. The vet was so surprised! That’s a loyal dog.
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Cassidy

My boyfriend and I met a pitbull puppy that was in the vet’s office after being abused from an abusive household. We decided to take him in and keep him, the only downside is that Cassidy had a shattered elbow from his abuse and required surgery to fix it. My boyfriend, Brandon, has a wonderful Aunt and Uncle that he lives with and they were able to pay for the first surgery. Now we have received the devestating news that he is going to require a second surgery and there is no way Brandon and I can afford it. His Aunt and Uncle would love to help but they have vet bills up the wazoo since they have so many other rescue animals requiring attention and care. We are starting a fund to help raise money for his surgery and any additional money that we raise will be donated to a pitbull rescue foundation. The downside is that because he needs this surgery fast we are not considered a non for profit organization so any donation made will not be tax deductibel…. which is preventing a lot of people from donating. If you are at all interested in helping or have any advice on fundraising please do not hesitate to contact me at thecassidyfund@yahoo.com
Thank you so much and God bless.

Tina from IL

Wolf and Trot

Over the years we have had many dogs and have loved them all.
We have two dogs,Wolf a 9 year old Norwegian Elkhound and Trot a 3 year old Australian Shepard.
Wolf is silver and black and looks much like a wolf.
He was a birthday gift from my husband,knowing how much I loved dogs and it had been awhile since we had a dog.
Wolf was and is the perfect gift.My husband also thought it would help me go the through the grieving process after the death of my Mom and sister,who died within a year of each other.
It was still hard but Wolf made it easier.
My Mom especially would have loved him too.
I have a fondness for wolves and when I saw him I knew what his name would be and I just had to bring him home.
He was so cute and looked like a wolf puppy,silver and black.
He was 11 weeks old.
He is a very smart, sweet dog and a great friend.
Trot is a small blue merle
Aussie.We got him when he was 9 weeks old.
He was the cutest puppy so soft and fluffy,with one marble eye (blue and brown) and the other brown.
He too is very sweet. Loves to play,can run like the wind.He is so smart and seems to understand so many words.
Wolf and Trot have had a love/hate relationship but really get along fine.
Our two daughters, Jennifer and Erin, are grown-up so the dogs help fill the void an empty nest can give.
We have 2 great son in – laws,Simon and Mark, and 2 beautiful grandsons.
We are all dog lovers including our 2 and a half year old grandson,Michael and I’m sure his nearly 2 week old brother,James, will be too.
I could go and on about dog stories from my life as an child and an adult but that would take up too much space.

Thank-you,Mark, for the beautiful story about the dogs in your life.

Karen from CT

Two Shelter Hounds

Dear Dr. Levin: I’m very sorry for your loss. When the Oklahoma City bombing tragedy was unfolding, I recall seeing an amazing story on TV. Forgive me that I can’t remember the name of the Rescue Worker, but dogs were brought in to search and recover. There was one black Lab in particular who became so emotionally depressed after finding body after body, that the Rescue Workers had to “plant” live people for him to “find alive” to lighten his load. The Rescue Worker cried recounting it. Him and his dog, they lived through that horror together, and what a special, special dog that is.

And let’s not forget “Rosie”, the guide dog who took her blind owner to safety from one of the Towers on 09/11. Other people whose lives were in immediate peril let them pass. Let the world say what they will about about New Yorkers. We know better.

Did you ever read ‘From Baghad With Love’, the book about the Marines that found an abandoned puppy in Fallujah? A must read.
Excerpt: “When Marines enter an abandoned house in Fallujah, Iraq, and hear a suspicious noise, they clench their weapons, edge around the corner, and prepare to open fire.

What they find during the U.S. led attack on the “most dangerous city on Earth,” however, is not an insurgent bent on revenge, but a tiny puppy left behind when most of the city’s population fled before the bombing. Despite military law that forbids the keeping of pets, the Marines de-flea the pup with kerosene, de-worm him with chewing tobacco, and fill him up on Meals Ready to Eat.

Thus begins the dramatic rescue attempt of a dog named Lava and Lava’s rescue of at least one Marine, Lieutenant Colonel Jay Kopelman, from the emotional ravages of war.

From hardened Marines to war-time journalists to endangered Iraqi citizens, ‘From Baghdad, With Love’ tells an unforgettable true story of an unlikely band of heroes who learn unexpected lessons about life, death, and war from a mangy little flea-ridden refugee.”

It’s amazing.

Jenel from NY

Felecia

Our daughter, Julianna, begged us for a dog when she was 13 or so. She had done her research and wanted to adopt a retired greyhound. We drove 2 hours to the greyhound rescue shelter in Rock Island, Ill. What a “candy store” it was to her. She of course wanted them all but she settled on a 2 y.o brindle/white lady. After going through the procesd which included a hoem visit to okay our home and fenced yard, Felicia joined our family. What a dog she is. The most docile relaxed breed I have ever been around.
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