I will get a photo posted later. This is a new computer and I do not have dog photos yet on my computer. My dog, Sarah, looked kind of like Sprite. I was depressed and lonely before rescuing a stray a friend named “Sandy,” and then I prayed for a companion for Sandy and Sarah came into our lives. My dogs were used by God to heal me of depression.

Helen from MD

Mark,
My son got me hooked on your show.   I\’m an eight year Veteran  from the Viet Nam era.
I had to put my corgi named Sugar to sleep this year, she was ten years old and had skin cancer.   I had her since she was four weeks old.   Sugar was so sweet and loved everything life brought across her path., she guarded a nest of baby rabbits and had a toad for a nightly check over, which came back nightly looking for her after she was gone.

Sugar was my shadow, she would listen for my every command and do it precisely.
Around  911, my Wife and I had separated, my Dad died , my Brother In Law died, I got downsized.   I was  very depressed  and was thinking about ending it all, but sugar was there with her sad eye’s nudging at me.   I looked at her and said I can’t do this, who’ll will take care of you baby?

Now my Trophy Wife of thirty years and I are back together and I have a new career, that I love, working with the mentally disabled, all thanks to Sugar on that lonely night.   I cried for weeks after I put her to sleep and I still get teary eyed when I dwell on her.   I tell her good night like you do Sprite and I can’t wait to get to heaven so we can play catch again.

Don from OH

Mark, my sister whi is an avid listner gave me your website to visit about the loss of your pet.
I too had to put down my beloved Shih tzu two months ago after a year of weekly treatments  in trying to save him. he was only 4yrs old. He had an inoperable tumor between his pelvis & bowel. It was the hardest thing i\’ve ever done next to burying a husband,my Mother, and a Nephew.

I just can\’t seem to keep from crying (as i am now) everytime I think or talk about him which is several times a day. Max was so full of life and personality. Everyone liked him. He would great everyone at the door with a wagging tail and he was a talker so he would growl and try to talk. The sad part about it was other than that tumor he was doing great after a long battle of a skin cond w/a miss disgnoisis that turned out to be a low thyroid. He had grown back all this hair and then this tumor came. I just can\’t seem to get over it. I guess I was just an overprotective mama that loved him like he loved life and people. Too much. Thanks for listening.

Mona from OK

i just finished reading rescuing sprite it is a story i can relate to. i lost my best friend chase october 7 2008. i was with him and held him in my arms as he passed. it was hard but i could not watch him suffer any longer. a few days after i was reading a book about indian folk lore and i read this in one of the stories-all the animal beings served in some way except makan`na the dog. being less gifted than other animals,he had nothing to offer,but felt he must give some thing. so the dog pledged his love,and lay down beside where the first man and first woman were sleeping. from that day the dog has remained by the side of human kind. my best friend chase is burried in his back yard.i just came in from telling chase that i miss him and love him good night my friend.

Brian from NY

Dear Mark:
I was told that you read every letter sent to this forum for Dogs. I have a best friend of 15 years, she is a black lab named Dixie who is reaching the end of her life, I’m not sure I can do what I need to do, I do everything I can to prolong it, but as I watch her I know it will be soon. I don’t know if I should read “Rescuing Sprite” before or after, it will be hard to focus on the book through my tears should I wait till after. If I could cash in 15 years of my life to have her for another 15 years I would in a heartbeat!

I hope you don’t mind if I also sneak this in… My father was a WWII Navy veteran who served in Guadalcanal, along with his two brothers. Unfortunately I spent my teen years in the early 70’s surrounded by liberal friends who keep me from continuing the Navy honor with there mind wash of that era.

On Fridays when you play the music from all the services I hear the Navy “Anchors Away” song and I become proud of my father but disappointed in myself that I didn’t serve this country in the tradition of my father. If there were no age limit I would sigh up today.

Thank you for what you do and what you say

Gary from UT