Hi Mark
Just finished reading your book about Sprite, Pepsi and Griffen.

I lost my little dog Jenny last November 5th. I had to make a decision like you and felt the same as you once Jenny was gone.

I am still finding it very hard as she was my baby, my shadow, my very special friend. I too feel I need to write about her and probably will one day.

I was unfortunately surrounded by people who didn’t understand – she was just a dog. I have a business and on the same day as she died they had written a letter of small issues they wanted to bring up with us. I can still not forgive this – I got no card, nothing from them. A couple of days later a person’s father-in-law died and they went overboard for this. I got one little card which meant so much from dear friends in Florida – I still have it – it did so much for me, also a friend’s little daughter drew me a picture which was lovely.

I was annoyed and very upset that she died, but it made it worse that many people who knew how much she meant to me didn’t even try to understand. It still hurts deeply.

I still have Jenny’s brother, Benji, who was 15 last March 16th. He is nearly blind and deaf and has diabetes. He is a very special dog.

Thank you for writing about Sprite. I’m glad you were there for him. It bought a lot of emotions forward again for me and I had to put the book down in places as it is still so raw still with Jenny.

Best regards

Elizabeth from the U.K.

I just wanted to tell you that I read “Rescuing Sprite” and I actually could feel your pain. I’m such a dog lover myself and I’ve been where you were many times. It never gets easier. I always say, I’ll never have another because it tears my guts out. But life without a dog is not living. Only a dog lover knows this to be true.
Thank you so much for putting yourself through such pain to share this with us. God Bless you, your family and Pepsi.

Kathy from AZ

I just finished sobbing my way through “Rescuing Sprite”. Reading it made me relive having to put my own beloved dog to sleep this past New Year’s Eve. Abbey came to my husband and I when she was 8 weeks old. My husband had always wanted a German Shorthaired Pointer, a hunting dog to hunt with. It soon became evident that Abbey was more content being with us than she was learning to hunt. We were fine with this but sensed that Abbey, now 1 year old, needed a furry friend too as well as her human companions. Off to Save- A – Pet we went. Our search of the shelter led us to a beautiful, gentle soul named Ranger. Ranger was a black and tan Shepard/Rott mix estimated to be about a year old. His gentle , calm demeanor was the perfect compliment to the very energetic and outgoing Abbey. This story would not be complete without mentioning that we believe that Abbey and Ranger had already met and bonded before we found him that day at the shelter and this is how. My husband would take Abbey to a dog park near our home almost everyday. One day they came back and he told me that he now knew why he liked dogs more than most people….He said that there was a shepard mix that had been dumped at the dog park sometime earlier that day and nobody could get close to it. Animal Control was there and trying to capture the dog. Abbey must have sensed that he needed a friend and she approaced him and they began to play . Eventually, animal control was able to coax the shepard close enough to catch him. Our visit to Save A Pet was approximately 1 month after this encounter at the dog park. When we asked to see Ranger and possibly adopt him we were told by the shelter volunteers that he was dumped in a park and had been at Save A Pet for almost a month! My husband immediately thought that this handsome dog was the same poor soul that had been carelessly left alone a month earlier at the dog park. Our suspicions were confirmed after we had the required “Meet and Greet ” with Abbey before we could adopt him. We introduced them that day at the shelter and they were immediately friends. Read the rest of this entry »

Dear Mark, Ijust finished reading about your spritey, I just lost our family dog, Amy, a big beautiful alaskan malmute to bone cancer at the age of 8 years 11 months, she had bone cancer in her left front ankle. I loved her like no other dog in my life (I’m 57) and shew loved me more than I coul;d Imagine she was put to sleep on Mar. 19, 08. it was the hardest thing I havew ever done in my life, I felt your pain in the hours preceding sprites passing for my wife and I experenced the exact thing we knew the night before she would have to be put down the next day she was in so much pain she was on 100mg’s of trammadol three times daily which she didn’t like. but nothing could stop the pain and we didn’t want to go tomorphine to give her afew more days we knew it would have torn up her stomach, we went to an orthopedic onoclagast and brought her and the e-rays fom our first vet and he said she is a big dog and amputation would not be advisable, he said she had 1 to 3 months left, I prayed for 3 but we got 1month exactly. she knew we were hart broken about her. she could tell but she tried to be upbeat as best she could malutes are inhsde/outside dogs, they love there family and she loved being in the house with us but she would sleep outside at night whewre it was cooler for her. I made her a large platform for her big mattress to sleep outin the open she also had a large igloo she would sleep in when it snowed or rained. when she was daignosed with bone cancer she slept in my room every nite, I know it was to comfort me. I also walked her every morning we live in the mountains of san diego so we have a beautiful wooded fenced acre so she had her room she loved her propery and home we had her put to sleep in a grassy area she took her naps by a hospice vet at our home we called her Amy’s angel she also had a wonderful last day, but she was in so much pain. Read the rest of this entry »

When Freedom came in she could not stand. Both wings were broken, her left wing in 4 places. She was emaciated and covered in lice. We made the decision to give her a chance at life, so I took her to the vet’s office. From then on, I was always around her. We had her in a huge dog carrier with the top off, and it was loaded up with shredded newspaper for her to lay in. I used to sit and talk to her, urging her to live, to fight; and she would lay there looking at me with those big brown eyes. We also had to tube feed her for weeks.

This went on for 4-6 weeks, and by then she still couldn’t stand. It got to the point where the decision was made to euthanize her if she couldn’t stand in a week. You know you don’t want to cross that line between torture and rehab, and it looked like death was winning. She was going to be put down that Friday, and I was supposed to come in on that Thursday afternoon. I didn’t want to go to the center that Thursday, because I couldn’t bear the thought of her being euthanized; but I went anyway, and when I walked in everyone was grinning from ear to ear. I went immediately back to her dowl cage; and there she was, standing on her own, a big beautiful eagle. She was ready to live. I was just about in tears by then. That was a very good day. Read the rest of this entry »

Just finished reading Rescuing Sprite. It was a gift given to me after the passing of our Golden Retriever-Champ. Champ died of Hemangiosarcoma on October 16, 2007. I have a huge story to tell. My husband and I raised 5 dogs for a Guide Dog organization. Champ was our first one. He was released due to kennel stress. So other than the 3 months he was away at “college”, he was with us his entire life. All 9 3/4 years. I had Champ certified as a therapy dog and we worked as a team for over 7 years. I used an animal communicator when it came to dealing with Champ and whether or not to treat him after his diagnosis. We had a cruise planned in October and ended up canceling it as I couldn’t go with our dog having cancer. He passed away 3 days after we would have gotten home. We would have lost all that time with him.

We have an 8 3/4 year old yellow lab named Tyler. Tyler has been a tremdous help to me and my husband. We have re-booked our cruise, but now Tyler has had some health problems. Nothing life threatening. He had a slight pancreas problem just a couple of weeks ago and now he is battling Uveitis. I am just sick to my stomach. I don’t feel I am strong enough to deal with all these health problems. I can’t enjoy this up and coming cruise. We are also awaiting the arrival of a new Golden Retriever puppy due in mid-April. I will be training him to be a therapy dog. I also want to write a book about Champ, but have never written a book before. Don’t know where to begin. I have alot more to say. Champ was an incrediable dog. Left a big legacy behind. Bless you Mark for writing this incrediable book about Sprite. It was wonderful!

Melinda from CA