With tears streaming down my face, I just laid down your story of Sprite, Pepsi, Griffen and your family. Thank you for having the courage to write this book!

Mark, you get it! You know the incomparable joy of the love of a dog and the inconsolable grief of a best friend lost. In your book, it is palpable. My heart goes out to you and your family in your loss of Sprite.

I had my beloved black cocker spaniel, Hannah “Banana”, for 14.5 years. My husband said she wasn’t the brightest dog, but she loved me totally and was loyal to the end.

She was there to greet me every morning with her big brown eyes and her svelte, sausage-like body. She ran with her head held high, carrying her bone or sniffing the air.

One of her favorite games was to chase squirrels. Oh how they loved to taunt her! She never got even close but she thought she was quite the huntress anyway.

She ate bees. Who the heck knows why? She barked at butterflies and ate anything that wasn’t nailed down. She hated dogs but loved all our cats. She even rolled over to “nurse” a kitten, though she had no milk! One day, we found a momma cat and 5 kittens. She was so curious about the kittens and was so gentle with them.

We called her Hannah “Banana” because she was so silly and Hannah the “Wonder Dog” when she did ANYthing that looked clever.

She waited patiently by the back door for me to come home every night. My husband and kids called her my shadow because she followed me everywhere.

As the years went by, she began to slow down. She didn’t like to go down the steps much and hated the rain. A spaniel who didn’t like water!

One morning, when she was 8, she couldn’t lift her head and was in obvious pain. I rushed her to the vet. X-rays revealed she had a slipped disc and pinched vertebra in her neck. Her vet couldn’t do the surgery because it was too delicate. He referred her to Washington State University for an expensive surgery. I knew we couldn’t afford it but I just couldn’t lose her! In tears, I called my folks. They volunteered to pay for more than HALF of the expensive procedure, which was such a blessing! She was like a new dog and lived for 6.5 more years.

In the end, she was deaf, had macular degeneration, was riddled with arthritis, had hypothyroidism, became increasingly incontinent, and had to be carried up and down the steps. Her once beautiful black, soft fur was dull and patchy. Eight of her teeth were extracted. She slept more and more.

I prayed that she would just go in her sleep. She didn’t.

Mark, Geoff, Lindsay and I knew that her quality of life was deteriorating. So this was it. I chose the day and the time of her death. This had never happened to me before. Before I had made these decisions in the heat of a crisis or accident, when there was no other humane choice. Read the rest of this entry »

Dear Mark,
My wife and I had to let our 14 year old dachshund go last night. She was the best dog I’ve ever had and it was the hardest decision I think I’ve ever had to make.

We welcomed Maggie into our home in January of 1994. Our shitzu had passed about 6 months before so it was time for a new addition. When my wife said she wanted a dog I said I wanted a Dachshund and she said she didn’t care what it was she just wanted a dog but that she wasn’t buying the first one we looked at. We put out the word to our clients that we were looking for a pure bread and one day this client came in and said “I know where a little girl is” and gave us the address and phone number. We called the breeder and made an appointment for the next Saturday to see this little girl. When we arrived about 8 big dogs came to the truck to greet us and we could hear a lot of dogs barking in the back yard. This place was filthy and when we entered the house the smell was so bad we just couldn’t hardly stand it. I looked down in this child’s play pen and here was this cute little puppy not much bigger than the palm of my hand and a scruffy little puddle . I told my wife to give the women a check and lets get this dog out of here because I just knew if we didn’t she would surely die here, not realizing it was a puppy mill. On the way home we decided to name her Maggie Pearl because she was born on Pearl Harbor Day of 1993.

Well a few days after we brought our new bundle of joy home I started to notice that there was something just wasn’t right with her. We took her to our Vet and he looked her over and said she has Mange mites, Ear mites and Worms. “I’ll do what I can but I don’t hold out to much hope so just take her home and love her.” Well she made it through all that and then a contracted an internal parasite about 7 years later that almost killed her and the same Vet helped bring her through that after 5 days in hospital.

She was and a tough, brave and trustworthy little dog, but she couldn’t escape old age. She lived a long and wonderful 14 year life and will forever be in mine and my wife’s hearts and a great part of our lives.

I purchased your Signed book for my wife for Christmas and as soon as she is finished with it I want to read it.
Thank you Mark for your site and all that you do. It has been a great help to start the healing process.
Maggie Pearl’s Dad,

Craig from CA

Three years ago, I was faced with having to put one of my Australian Shepherds to sleep. I couldn’t imagine my life without a dog so I began to search the So. California Australian Shepherd website for a dog to adopt. On the website was a picture of a dog with two broken legs. The foster home who had taken him in was looking for monetary donations to help with cost of surgery to repair the legs. I donated money and several days later, I received a call from the Foster Mom asking me if I would be interested in adopting him, once he recovered from surgery. I went to meet him and was drawn to him. He hobbled around but had such courage and a tremendous spirit. At the time I met him, he had undergone two surgeries to repair the breaks. Unforturnately, the surgeries were not successful. I took him to a specialist and he told me that the breaks were extensive and that bone grafts, pins and plates would be necessary for the dog to be able to use his legs again. I told him to operate.

That was three years ago. Today, “Lucky” is a happy, healthy, energetic dog who loves to chase rabbits, cats, balls and go for car rides. Rescuing this dog has been one of the best things I have ever done.

Susie from CA

Dear Mark,
I didn’t feel like I would be writing this at this time. We just lost our beloved cat, Scooter, last night. I found him this morning. I brought him home and wrapped him in his blanket. I walked in circles around the house a good part of the morning. I Held him for a good part of this morning, then laid him on the couch, kind of avoiding what I knew needed done.

I grabbed a box out of the closet, but I just couldn’t put him in a box. I went to Wal-Mart to find something to put him in with enough room for his blanket and his toys he got for Christmas. The feelings got tougher to deal with looking for something to lay him to rest in. He wasn’t quite a year old. I haven’t owned an animal since I lived at home with my parents, and that’s been 20+ years.

I wasn’t looking for one, but he adopted us. He came to me on the back deck as a stray, he thought I hung I hung the moon and the stars, and I never was a cat person. I kept waiting for him to run down the hall today to see what I’m doing. We just buried him an hour ago. I was waiting for my girlfriend to get home so we could do it together. I’m familiar with your book. I may wait a bit before I pick one up to read when I’m ready. He was a good cat. My eyes are still wet as I type. I wanted to send this to you, I hope it will make me feel better tomorrow. You would have liked him. If he was able to, I’m sure he would have voted Republican.

Thanks Mark! I guess this is my start of the healing process. I’m gl;ad you had this venue, because I couldn’t have called your show, because I think I would have cried out loud. I know you’re a conpassionate man towards animals.
Thanks so much,

Steven from TX

I just finished reading your book, Rescuing Sprite. I had been eyeing your book at the bookstore but couldn’t bring myself to buy it as my dog, KC, was suffering from congestive heart failure and I knew her time with me was coming to a close. I had to have her put to sleep last Friday, at 4:30 pm and was absolutely devastated.

While my husband loves our dogs, he isn’t as open about his feelings as I am and felt very alone. I ran out and bought your book on Sunday and didn’t stop until I was finished that day. I can say that I am so glad you wrote that book because I could identify with everything you said. It was incredible and really did make me feel better. I was so torn in half by putting her to sleep. I felt so guilty by being the one to decide the date, time, etc., that would end her life. Everyone kept telling me it was the right thing to do but the other half of me kept screaming not to do it. I just wanted you to know that your book has brought so much comfort to me, just to know I’m not crazy for feeling the way I do about losing my baby!

Thanks for sharing your deepest thoughts and I know you have probably helped thousands of pet lovers like me and will continue to help in the future!

Thanks so much!

Kathy from IL

I thank you Mark for your book. As a dog and animal lover all my life, I believe you have captured, in it’s simplest form, the true love we have for our 4 legged friends. I have had to put down several dogs in my life (42 years old) and none have been easy. They have all been very hard but always knowing I would see them all again. The thought you had which best captured my feelings is “we humans are the lucky ones” Thank you and I hope and pray that when our current puppy, Shelly, goes to heaven, she will be waitng for me along with her brothers & sisters to come home to her so she can give me her doggy kisses as only she can. May God bless you Mark and your family as well.

Anthony from NJ