Our 19 year old dog was diagnosed with stage 3 kidney desease and rather than put her down we made a home hospice for Brandy, a beagle shepard mix. Her legs were weak as was her bladder but we changed her bedding all day and took her outside every day to smell her yard. The last few weeks we watched her 24/7 to attend to her needs and sometimes to just calm her anxiety. She fought so hard and ate all her favorite human meals until about the last few days. Even then she fought and fussed and loved getting comfort and finally on election day morning I came in after voting, petted her and calmed her down from what was going to be (I thought) another full day of her fighting. After a 2 hour nap I came down and started talking to her not realising that she was gone. She just went to sleep and never woke up.
We had a long day of goodbyes and my wife (who owned her since she was a pup) held her and tried to prepare herself for the final goodbye, as did her 14 year old son. We buried her in her yard….with her favorite toy, a piece of steak and we even sprinkled bacon bits over her. Such a blessed sweet dog. and Friend.
My wife (Tyna) is still having a terrible struggle with her grief…this was her dog and when she came down with congestive heart failure at age 32 Brandy was by her side every moment she was convalescing. We actually miss staying up all hours to tend to her needs because through it all she was sweet and strong. They’ll never be a stronger dog than her….19 years and 4 months old. Our house is too quiet without her. And Tyna is heartbroken beyond belief.

— Mike from Toledo, OH

I recently lost my Shiba Inu, Max to what we can only guess was a spider bite. He was only 6 and too young to go. I had many more years of things I had planned to do with him. I found him in a shelter over 6 years ago before I even knew what a Shiba Inu was. I was used to cattle dogs so adjusting to a cat/dog took a little time. You can never let them off leash because they’ll take off to parts unknown. That’s how I thought I would lose him. He’d get loose and I’d never see him again. All our others dogs lived to old age and had sicknesses so we were prepared but this was unexpected. I’ve been having a hard time. I continually play the “what if” game. What if I had taken him to vet sooner? He’d had allergies before, plus he and the other dog had been at it over a bone a couple of days earlier, so we didn’t think much about him chewing the hair off his hip. 36 hours later he was dead. They tell me that even if I had brought him in that morning, it wouldn’t have help. I’ve never been this close to one of my dogs before. He was MY dog, my buddy, my constant companion and I felt like I failed him. He left me on Sept 21 and I still have trouble accepting it but at least I’m not crying anymore.

— Joni from Denton, TX

Keno was our dog. That sentence seems so incomplete and inadequate. Between the day my wife, Pam, brought home this battered, tattered and obviously abused puppy from a mall’s parking lot to the day over 12 years later that she passed away, Keno was so much more.

Our middle dog, Keno was at times daughter, sister and mother. We had Millie, the matriarch, 16 at the time she passed away a year ago, and Cubby our 5 year old (picture Marley on steroids….. if you’ve seen the movie Marley and Me you’ll understand). During those almost 13 years we never had a day where she was a primary concern. Despite two attacks by unleashed dogs, two torn ACL’s in both hind legs, a complete swollen and closed eye due to a tooth infection and a pepper spraying and beating by home invaders, Keno never whined or demanded attention.

She jumped higher and ran faster than almost any dog I ever saw (ask the squirrels she terrorized in our back yard, especially the one she brought into our living room one summer day). Even after both hind legs were damaged due to the torn ACL’s, Keno ran as fast as she could with Cubby in the back yard chasing birds, squirrels and balls.

She would never demand attention, just lifting her head toward you ever so slightly when you passed her lying on the floor, looking out the front door watching life pass by, so you could give her a few pats on the head and then continue watching the world.

She filled our lives with love while demanding none. Keno was our dog.

— Jeff from Van Nuys, CA

My wife Amy and my two boys, Connor and Cameron, were blessed with our sweet and lovable Australian Labradoodle about 2 years ago. His name is Crosby after the hockey player Sidney Crosby. We are huge hockey fans and love the Pittsburgh Pens. We bought Crosby a Penguin jersey, which we were fortunate to have Sidney Crosby sign. Of course, we display the jersey proudly in our family room. Mark, thanks for your love of dogs and your love of this country. You have been a huge inspiration to my entire family.

— Joel from Johnstown, PA

This is about our Gus-Gus…he (like so many others dogs and cats) was dumped on our property. He had terrible ear infections, his teeth were literally worn off (the doctor thinks from chewing on rocks or a chain), hot spots, was not fixed, and was underweight. This dog was amazing, he was determined to live with us…he literally sat in the horse pen and whined to let us know he was here and wanted us to see him. Of course, the minute we saw him, we loved him! We called him “Big Brown Dog” as we were trying not to get attached as we attempted to find him a new home. Little did we know Gus-Gus decided that we were his new family. Well, it didn’t take long for us to realize that too! He needed a name because we decided that we would be his new family and love him forever! Gus-Gus fit him so well, (just like the fat lovable mouse from Cinderella) only Gus-Gus wasn’t fat ….. yet! Three doctor visits later…he was fixed, had his ear infections and hot spots taken care of and also found two fox-tails deep in his ear canal. He arrived here at under 80 pounds…Today he weights 120 pounds and is so loving! We aren’t sure of his age, so we are enjoying every day with him. Between the three different doctors that attended to his health care, there have been three different guesses as to what Gus-Gus is…we think he is some kind of a Mastiff/Lab cross. He loves to “talk” and loves to have his tummy scratched. We have other dogs that keep him company and of course he has his cats, they all love him! When Gus-Gus “talks” I think he says “mom” …he looks right at me when he does it…well others might think I am silly…but Gus-Gus and I know what he is saying.

On April 8, 2010, I received an email from the supervisor of the Walton County Animal Shelter. They had just received a young terrier pup from a woman and her son. The pup was in need of care that the owner could not provide. A picture of the young dog, which showed the injury, was included with the email.
I happen to be the veterinarian for the county shelter. This pup had injuries beyond the scope of the county’s care. In spite of her injuries, the puppy was full of energy and personality. This was topped off with plenty of tail wags.
The pup’s jaw was broken on both sides. The right side was fractured just behind the lower canine tooth. The fracture of the left side was just in front of the lower large molar tooth. These injuries were devastating and way too severe for the county to provide the treatment and care needed to nurse this dog to an adoptable state; therefore, the fate of this canine was virtually sealed. There are too many great dogs awaiting adoption and we have to consider how to spread the small amount of money around to best serve those deserving dogs and get them good homes. The decision was made to humanely euthanize the young dog. She was put in a cage to await a fate she could not escape.
I went on about my morning duties which consisted of surgery, examining and treating animals in the shelter. As I went about my work, I walked by the room in which the little dog was placed in a cage. The pup was standing there, with her lower broken jaw hanging open, happily waging her tail as if she had just seen her long lost owner. I continued on to the surgery room to finish up for the day, but the sight of the puppy stayed in my head. I have been a practicing veterinarian for twenty-eight years and have seen countless numbers of great dogs. Every now and again, one individual just makes an impression on a person that cannot be forgotten. Seeing the happy pup in that cage was one of those rare times for me.
I arranged for the happy puppy to be brought to my clinic so that I could be in charge of her care and recovery. Surgery was scheduled the day she arrived. With the two fractures of the mandibles, surgical repair of the bones would be difficult, at best. The pup was anesthetized and the repair was started. After more than an hour long surgery, the bones were aligned. She awoke without complications. The next few days would be critical in the healing process; watered down food, no playing and much rest were the pup’s only requirement.
During the next couple of days, the little terrier was as happy as ever. Such a joyful little dog needed a name. I thought and thought of a fitting name. “Jaws” was the first name that came to mind. After a day or two the name just didn’t seem to fit. My wife came up with the name “Chuy”. This name fit the happy pup and she became Chuy from then on.
For the next two weeks, Chuy was doing fine and eating watered down canned dog food. After the two weeks, we noticed Chuy was pawing and rubbing at her jaw. I planned to sedate the still exuberant pup and examine the wires holding the mandibles together. I tranquilized Chuy and inspected both of the fracture sites. Much to my dismay, Chuy had dislodged the wires which held her bones together and her jaw was not healing. Now what could I do? I’m feeling depressed. This great little dog who I decided to help save from certain euthanasia may be facing that possibility again.
Meanwhile, Connie, my office manager had found a super nice family to adopt Chuy. We now had to tell the new adoptive family that a possible disastrous outcome was brewing. I was not ready to give up on this little girl. Having been a veterinarian for twenty-eight years, I know many specialists around the country. I got on the phone with a friend of mine who is a board certified veterinary dentist/oral surgeon. After discussion of Chuy’s case, we designed a new plan to stabilize the fractures to allow for proper healing.
I had all the necessary materials and the products needed to carry out the procedure so the oral surgery was placed on the schedule. Chuy was sedated and placed on the general gas anesthesia machine with all of the monitoring equipment necessary for surgery. After two hours of surgery both fractures were repaired and stabilized. A splint was made in Chuy’s mouth. It consisted of wires, stainless steel orthopedic pins and dental acrylic. Positioning of the splint was very good. Chuy awoke from anesthesia. Six to eight more weeks of recovery were needed. The new owners were notified and after a couple of weeks Chuy was introduced to her new home.
About four weeks into her recovery, Chuy was brought the clinic for an evaluation. Chuy(now Anna Beth) was anesthetized to radiograph the fracture sites to see how the healing process was going. The radiographs were great! Chuy was healing nicely. We adjusted her oral apparatus. The mouth appliance needed more acrylic to keep it secure for the next few weeks. Everything looked good. I hoped the great pup would continue to heal properly. There were still three or four more weeks to go before we would know for sure.
The big day came! Once again the friendly pup was put under anesthesia. Hopefully this will be the last time the pup faces anesthesia. We X-rayed the mandibles again. The radiographs appear normal and Anna Beth was doing fine. Great! A Success!
I think that Anna Beth (AKA Chuy) will live a long and happy life with her new parents. She still likes to come to see her guardian angels at the clinic and will forever be a welcome visitor.

— Jack from Defuniak Springs, FL