Mark i read you book about sprite. i know exactly how you felt i cried and cried while i read this book. then it happened the next day after reading your book my dog lil bit got sick and died 3 days later. it is so heart breaking and i blame myself she was poisoned. she suffered no vet was open animal control would not even come to get her to put her out of her misery. i had to sit here in my home and watch her die. i still cannot talk about her without crying and this was 2 months ago.it was awful. we buried her out here next to the house. she was so full of life and to see what this did to her was awful. she was less than a year old.
Someone around here did not like her. two other dogs have had the same thing happen to their dogs. i loved her with all my heart and i really miss her. our other dog does too. he goes to the neighbors trying to find his pal. so i know exactly how you feel and i am having a rough time even wanting another dog. thank you for writing your book cause it prepared me for what was about to happen to lil bit.
Christine from TN
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On Sunday evenening, January 25, 2009 my precious “Tundra” passed away. She was a Beagle/Collie mix. She had the sweetness of the Collie and the fun and curiosity of the Beagle. She was 16 years and 9 months old. My wife and I got her when she was a year old (one year after we got married). She was our precious angel for 15 of our 16 years in marriage.
We knew the day would come when our Tundra would have to leave us. When she was 10, she had to have surgery to repair a hematoma in her ear. When she was 12, she had surgery to remove a large cyst on her back. When she was 13, she got an infection in her tooth, and it severely affected her enrgy and health. We took her in to the vet wondering if this was the end, if she could survive another surgery. Thanks to God, her blood test came back showing that all her organs were functioning fine, so we ordred the surgery to remove the infected tooth. One thing’s for sure, she got a lot of use of that plastic cone around her neck. When she got home from surgery, she was moaning in pain. She was in pain, but she survived. A couple of days later, she was a completely new dog. She got her love of life back. She was bouncing around the house like a puppy again.
We took Tundra everywhere with us, no matter how short the trip. She loved to go on car rides.
Last summer, 2 months after her 16th birthday, I picked up a copy of “Rescuing Sprite.” I started crying just reading the back cover. At 16 years old, I knew my wife and I would have to face the same heart wrenching decision that Mark made. I prayed for the strength to do what was right. In the mean time, Tundra was our constant companion. We spoiled her rotten with hugs and treats. She always slept with us on the bed, often under the covers.
Tundra’s energy slowly waned. She couldn’t run as fast. She couldn’t hike as far. She was in good health. She just wasn’t as active. When she was 13, we put steps against the bed, so that she wouldn’t have to struggle.
Then came that awful weekend in late January. She developed a cough, her breathing became rapid and shallow. She coudn’t sleep. She didn’t want to eat. It was heartbreaking that she even turned down her favorite treat – hotdogs. We made an appointment with the vet for the next day. We knew the time had finally come for us to say goodbye. Read the rest of this entry »
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I am still reading Rescuing Sprite (2/3 done). Today March 6 is one month annversity of Missy’s death. She died Feb 6 at 1:30 pm at home surrounded by her humans (my husband and me), Molly (dog) and 4 cats that loved her. We miss her so much. She was 13 years 9 months and died from kidney failure. She and Molly are Border Collies. Missy was special (as all our pets are). She was fiesty, regal, stuborn, intuitive and loving. She could look into your eyes and see your soul. She knew us and our moods and habits better than we knew ourselves. She loved our cats and would not tolerate them fighting. She was the one that mothered us all.
When she was at her best, she held her head high, ears up and tail on top of back. She was beautiful inside and out. I guess you can tell we loved her so. We could not put her “down”. She did not suffer. The last 3 weeks she was alive she could not walk or get up anymore. I am a Nurse. We turned her every hour, cleaned her when she was messy and fed her when she could not do it herself. I still do not think we did enough for her. Even when we knew she was dying I was shocked when she did. I just thought she would be around for a lot longer.
I too have trouble with death, not my own but with others. If heaven does not have our pets, I don’t want to go.
In so many ways I think dogs and cats are a lot better than some human. Certainley more loving and caring.
Our other Border Collie, Molly, is 12 years old. We know her time will come all to soon but I cherish each moment with her. She is greiving along with the cats. Missy was the oldest and was always around for the others.
As you have said, Missy taught us much about love and living. We were truly blessed to have her in our loves.
I am sorry for the death of Sprite but very glad you wrote about him. How is Pepsi doing?
As you can tell I am not much of a writer. I hope this helps with pain and loss. I am still raw with the loss of Missy.
A Dog Lover,
Judy from KY
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Hey Mark!
Love your show, catch it every time I get the chance.
Oberon T. Astaire.
Well, we had rented a home for several years and as most leases go, we were not allowed to have pets. When we purchased our home last August one of the first tasks we had was to find a four legged addition for or family. As we were moving into the new house, a water bowl was placed in a corner of the kitchen in anticipation of our new addition. It had to be a dog, we’re not cat people. We had already been looking before the move and were not finding what we were looking for. You see, we have a few favorites and they are all in the retriever family. I had made the decision that after owning several females myself, it was time for a male. We spent a lot of time online searching through local listings of shelters and rescues.
After being in the new house for about a week, we found that a full litter of Black Labs had ended up at a shelter 1 ½ hours away. My wife and I hopped in the truck and headed off. When we arrived at the Robeson County Humane Society’s Shelter in Lumberton, NC, we were greeted by the great staff there. As we walked through the shelter one thing really stood out, the place was spotless! This, to me, was a good sign that the animals sheltered there were taken care of.
They had separated the litter into separate kennels. There had originally been six pups, two males and four females, but one of the males had already been adopted. I stopped in front of the chain-link kennel gate that held the lone male. He stood with his front paws up on the gate, as to say “So, what do ya think?” His sisters were yelping and barking and carrying on but, he just stood there looking up at me with his big, beautiful eyes, wagging his tail. Read the rest of this entry »
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I’ve been retired due to a couple of back surgeries for about a year now. We were smart about our money and financially we will be fine for years and years to come. I stopped by the SPCA in Sumter, SC today and looked over the dogs there and found one who might make me a good companion while my wife is at work and a great addition to our empty nester family. I’m able to walk a dog and care for it as I do lirrle else but read a lot and listen to tak radio, TV westerns sometimes but that’s about it. Anyway, I’m going to take my wife to the SPCA tomorrow and get her opinion about the dog I found that seemed to be able to tolerate me. Just thought i’d let you guys know.
Chip from SC
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I am now the proud owner of my second “rescue’ dog. Her name is Reina and she is the sweetest little thing. She is about 2years old and adores my husband and me. I am her 5th. owner and she knows she has found her forever home. We were not going to get another dog but I had always said ” if one comes my way I would take it” We are so happy she came our way.
Wil from NV
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