I wrote this for our lab-mix who was put to sleep in July of 2006 and want to share it with fellow dog lovers.

Doc, our good buddy

Scott found you as an abandoned and abused puppy. When you were new to us, you would hide your face between my arm and the side or my body and stay very still for a few minutes. As your health and confidence grew, that habit faded away and was forgotten.

We shared our lives together for eleven years. You were the least demanding dog we have ever been blessed to live with and love. It was as if you were so thankful to have a home that you didn’t want to be a lot of trouble.

Over the last few months we watched as day by day, life became increasingly difficult for you. One late night, while we were outside, you walked up and hid your face between my arm and the side of my body and stayed very still for a few minutes. Memories of your days as a puppy seeking comfort came back to me. I knew what you were saying. Thank you for staying with us as long as you could,for the gift of time to say goodbye. You were giving until the end. Thank you for love, loyalty, and happiness.

Rest in peace good buddy, you will live in our hearts.

Love,

Ann and Scott from GA

My brides of 38 years had a great genius golden retreiver named rufus(red face in latin) who could read minds and do what she wanted every time, except of couse when he saw a deer alll bets were off. My favorite memory of this great dog was in my 20 acre woods in East Texas. I was on one side of our 15 foot deep ravine which is 25 feet across. I heard rufus running chasing a great stag which leaped the ravine with ease. rufus with full confidence leap folllowing the stag. He ended up with a great splash in the creek in the ravine. I will never forget the look of pur ejoy on his face as he leptg with full confidence and did a classic Wily E Coyote fall.

He died while my bride was driving home from Austin tx after visiting our son Ted who was a student at UT. He had a bloody pericardial effusion which is always cancer in 10 year old goldens. My wife has never forgiven herself 3 years now for not being with her great friend at the end. Read the rest of this entry »

Rescuring Sprite was such an awesome book. Mark, thank you for writing it. A friend bought it for me after my dog, Brinkley, suddenly passed away. He was our very best friend. He was only 4 years old and went to have his ACL repaired. He died on the operating table (as soon as they put him under). An autopsy showed he had a bad heart. We are truly devastated. He died the day after Thanksgiving; it’s been 6 weeks and we still sob for him. I broke down once again this morning. I miss him terribly.

I know exactly how your family felt, Mark. They are your best friends and part of your family. Only a dog lover could possibly understand what they mean to you. It’s like losing one of my children. My kids use to tease that he was my favorite. He was always there for me. When I felt down, he knew it and would comfort me. He was always there to greet all of us when we came home. He loved us all differently. I bought a stone for the yard with his picture on it for my husband and made a beautiful scrap book for my children. Christmas was extremly sad for us–we had his empty stocking hung just like you did. His ashes sit on my entertainment center with 2-8×10 pictures (one when he was a puppy and one as an adult). His memory will live on forever.

Terri from PA

In October after several years of asking my wife to get me a basset hound got me one from a friends neighbor. She was badly mistreated, with a flea infestation, mange, bad diet. We fell in love with her instantly. As soon as we got her we took her to the vet to have her checked out. He gave us medication for the fleas, mange, gave her a rabies shot and tested her for heart worms. She had them and we bagan treatment right away.

Over the last 3 months we have done everything that we could for her, we got rid of her fleas, and her hair had all come back nicely. She was always well loved and gave love to everyone in my family. On Jan 3 2008 she lost her fight with heart worms. I had heard Mark talk about Sprite on the radio, and I knew some of what he was going through, but I was sure that my “Lady” would pull through. I didn’t know that I could fell such loss as I am feeling over her.

I have not read Mark’s book yet, but plan to now. After listening to him talk about “Sprite” I know he will have a good insite. I am mad at the person who mistreated her, but I know that she was happy and well loved for the time she spent with us.

Matthew from TX

Dear Mark; Our 155 lb(not fat) Rottweiler, Sargent Schultz, left us the day after Christmas to join his buddies in heaven. My Daughter saw how much I was hurting. She bought your book for me and ordered another by Eugene O’neill regarding the death of a beloved dog. I can’t explain the emptiness I feel.We live along the Atlantic Ocean.An inlet comes off the oceanwhere there is an island that the County Of Monmouth has desiginated part of as a dog park area.Everyday, we walkedthrough the parking area,through the woods, until we got to the beach alond the inlet.Schultz loved this excursion!!!Rain, snow or shine he always got his two mile walk each day to the water. We never minded taking him as we were a family and loved each other very much. About a week before he died he started to walk slowly and dragged his rear feet.

We immediately took him to our localk regular vet. He had xrays, bloodwork, etc, A substitute vet attended to him as our regular vet was vacationing in Hawaii. After two sessions she recommended we take him to Red Bank Veternary hospital as she was stymied as to his problem.Red Bank is state of the art. I don’t think a finer medical institution for pets exists in the country. Just the admission section has 25 admission rooms. The attached hospital is like a University medical center.When i saw this complex I thought Schultz is at the best place possible.I felt we were in good hands. The big guy was so big and so good.!He let the vet examine him without any fuss. They then took him inside and after three hours plus she returned and called us back into the examining room. her message was grim,Schultz had a large tumor attached to his spleen.She said they needed to operate immediately however the prognosis was bleak. Even if he survived the surgery, we might “add another month or two to his life”. Read the rest of this entry »

My baby Maxie had diabeties, went blind, had horrible allergies similar to Sprite rubbing his face on a sofa,she was my everything. She has been gone since July 26th. 2007 upon reading your book you have given me such a relief from my grief, my husband was like your Kendall, I was more like you in my sorrow. I have so much love for my Maxie she was an awesome yellow lab she was 10.

Angie from MD