I lost my buddy Jake one year ago on November 3rd,2006. Needless to say I was not ready. He had recently been diagnosed with CHF and Kidney failure. The x-rays were the worst I had ever seen. But I still held out hope that the medication would keep him here at least for a couple of years. 3 months later, he was gone. He died in my arms. As a vet tech, I was used to death and helping grieving people cope. But it is so different when it is your own. I am still not over it and I miss him everyday. He had the most beutiful harp seal eyes I have ever seen. He could melt even the hardest of hearts. Wait for me at the first pulley buddy.

Stephanie from Texas

Mark – I wanted to tell you about Daisy. She was a precious small bundle of doggie love. She was a bischon frise who was a white fluffy babygirl. She lived for 18 years and I feel selfish for expecting my pain over losing her to have been delayed for even more years than that, but the day finally came when she had to be put down. I held her in my arms, wrapped in her pink baby blanket, as my son drove us to the Vet’s office and I could see that she knew she would not be coming back home again as she lay very quiet and very calm in my arms. I could not deal with saying goodbye to her so my son did the difficult task of being with her to the end as I walked out to the field behind the Vet’s office and waited so that I would not hear any sounds of pain or despair coming from her.In death, she did as in life, by bidding a more compassionate goodbye. The most amazing thing about her was that she taught me things about love that I could have never ever learned any other way.

Grace from Arizona

At our house it’s a zoo. Besides 3-kids at home(and the occassional Mother-in-Law),we have 4-cats, 4-dogs and 2-horses. They’re all well loved and thus well adjusted to each other and get along well.I’m sure you can imagine the stories. My reason for writing though, is to say thank you for all you do. All of it shows us along with your deep love for animals, the real definition of a compassionate conservative. God Bless you for that. What makes you tick is an example for us all! I would like to end with saying a little about a wonderful dog who left us a few years ago. Her name was Katie. Dog lovers may have many dogs in their lives and some may have 1 or 2 that are extra special.Katie was one of those dogs of a life time to me. She was always with me and very loving.Her life of 13-yrs. was full of fun stories,but it was in her death that she comforted me the most. She had broken her left front leg one night in the back yard. She was yelping very lowd in pain while trying to get up. As I approached, She calmed down at the sound of my voice and laid across my lap quietly while I examined her. This was the trust between us that stilled her. Being a weekend we paid the 2,200.00 for the opperation to fix her. The sad thing was the small tumor in her bone that caused the break. We got the results from the lab the next Wednesday. It was a very aggressive cancer. She was given 6 months. I made an aluminum brace that went around her back and supported her leg so she could still walk around the yard. She got to be good enough to run(or should I say thump) with it. She would even us it to do a fast pivot to change direction. Anyway She was pretty mobile. I just had to carry her up and down the stairs (75#s).We had her for another 10 months before She slipped a disc and became parylised. I cried and talked with Her for a long drive to the vet. She seemed to understand that it was finally time. She didn’t like living like this at all. When I laid Her on the table I could hardly see Her for the tears. She laid there calmly. After a final goodby,my vet gave Her Her shot… On Her last breath, I swear her spirit passed though me. It was an intense rush of love. She was telling me, “It’s OK. I’ll see you Later”. My tears stopped immediatley and calmed down. With Her passing energy She had taken care of Me again.
Thank You Mark.

Steve from Colorado

I had a little black poodle for 18 years, her name was Sugar. She died 4 years ago she had heart failure. The day she died I was affraid to put her down, it was liked she wanted to stay in my arms, I put her on the chair Ishe was trying to stay alive. So I keep saying to her its ok you can go, and she did.My husband cry like a baby. we still can’t stop loving her and missingn her.Mark I believe God has her in heaven. I listen to u every day wish u were on week end.

Dorothea from Texas

Mark,
I want to thank you for your appearance on Hannity & Colmes last night. I lost my beloved Emmit on December 6, 2006, about 12 hours before you lost Sprite. Emmit’s death was totally unexpected and shocking. I had taken him to the vet at 6:00 p.m. to check a lump that I had found deep under his throat. It was probably a thyroid tumor, and they asperated some fluid from it to send to the lab for testing. He was fine and we went back hom; however, shortly after I got him home, his breathing became extremely labored and by the time I rushed him back to the vet, it was too late, He was still alive, but it appeared that the tumor had most likely ruptured and he was bleeding into his chest cavity. There was nothing they could do and I finally decided to have him put to sleep about 9:00 p.m. Until I heard your story last night, I thought I had gone off the deep end and was close to crazy because I then experienced the same profound sadness, shock and depression that you described and mine also lasted for weeks and months. My brain was telling me I was being completely irrational, but my heart was simply broken and sad beyond belief and it was very difficult for me to try to make sense out of it. I soon came to realize, though, much in the same way that you did, just how deeply I was affected by my dog’s love, friendship and total devotion and that it was something I had never experienced before and something I should not try to discount. I soon realized that all my emotions and feelings were not only real but valid and I allowed myself to grieve as long as it took and refused to “try to put it behind me” as everyone around me was hoping and praying I would. It changed my life and I still grieve today, including right now as I type these words. I take time every day to think about the short time I had with Emmit. He too was a shelter rescue dog and I only had him for four years, but I know he will be with me always. In the days after his death I made as many notes as I could about all the memories that were flooding my mind and I am going to write his story in a journal for myself. You were so lucky to have such understanding friends and colleagues to support you. I wasn’t so lucky since my husband thought it was best that he tell my children, family and friends not to “talk about the dog” in the hopes that I would get over it. That left me thinking no one cared about how painful my loss had been. My children had never seen me in such a state and I couldn’t understand why they seemed to be making every effort to ignore what had happened. By the time I realized my husband had orchestrated a moratorium on anyone speaking to me about the dog, it was well past the time when anyone could offer anything to help. So I never got to talk about the good times or the funny stories or what other people felt about his life or his death and that’s something I can’t ever get back. A couple of friends did get to me with a note or a card and the only person who truly helped me through it all was my wonderful next door neighbor who just kept coming over and visiting with me and reminiscing, and I will be grateful to her forever for being so kind and understanding. She was as much a part of my dog’s life as I was because he also adored her and her two boys. I met those neighbors one month after I adopted Emmit and the first thing they asked me was if they could take him on a picnic. He went and they became fast friends from that first meeting and when he died, my neighbor grieved just as much as I did because it was like we shared him. When she finally learned what had happened, she called me late one night because she was crying and couldn’t sleep. She came right over and when I saw her, after we hugged and cried for a long time, she said “he was my kids’ dog.” And he really was. It was amazing to me how much closer they were to my dog than my own family members were. But I will always have all those wonderful memories of sharing my special Emmit with them. I’m really doing much better now, although I know the one-year anniversary is looming. I adopted another shelter dog last February and he is a wonderful little friend to me now. I learned so much from losing my very special Emmit, and I am now a volunteer with a wonderful local shelter and I have lots of new dog people in my life. It is so rewarding for me to help throw-away dogs find new homes. So I am doing just what you asked of people last night on Hannity. I’m helping pets find new homes and working hard to spread the word about breeders. I can’t wait to buy your book and I just wanted to thank you again and tell you that now I feel normal and justified in my grief. I hope that some day I will be near one of your book signings because having you sign my book would mean so much to me. Best of luck with the sale of the book and thank you so much for your contributions to all the shelters you will help. All animal shelters need help and always will, but the best thing animals in shelters have going for them is that they are being cared for by people who love them all. All the best!

Eileen from New York\

Mark, Here’s a system I’ve been using for the past 9 years. It’s a system that you or any dog owner can and SHOULD use. I own two amazing chocolate Labs. Coco and Henry. Every day when I wake up and see them I remind myself of how lucky I am to have them. Throughout the day, if they do something to make me smile or laugh I again remind myself how lucky I am. I also remind myself that they will not be there forever. There will be a day that I won’t be able to give thanks for having them. I remind myself that they are being LENT to me by a higher power who wants to make my life on earth easier and more enjoyable. One day they will be gone. I just want to be sure that I acknowledge and remind myself how much better MY life has been because they are here. Not forever, I know, but for NOW!

Fred from Nevada