It was a sunny and warm, late May morning when I went for a walk. I went south of town into an area of farms and rolling fields. The freshly planted corn and soybean fields yielded more than a distraction from a day of heavy studies. In the midst of my walk I saw a small black dot coming towards me as I traversed the countryside. It turned out to be one of the greatest joys of my life. Someone had dumped a three month old lab mix out in the country. He followed me some four miles until we got home. I scrambled up some eggs and got a couple of slices of toast to feed him. Then it was bath time. Whatever he had gotten into on his adventures was ripe. That was 13 1/2 years ago when Gus became my best friend and companion.

A year ago, I had to make one of the hardest decisions of my life. Gus was diagnosed with inoperable cancer of the lower spine. He was finally showing signs of break through pain and he rushed him to the vet to see if anything else could be done. The vet offered to do exploratory surgery to see the state of the tumor’s growth. Gus as on the operating table when the worst-case scenario was discovered. The cancer was ravishing his entire body. I decided then to let Gus go in peace. Since his passing I have taken to going on daily Gus Memorial Walks with my other dog, a border collie mix, Lady Girl. Gus’s death has been extremely hard on both Lady Girl and I. However, we are both enjoying our walks and I have found a new appreciation for the simpler aspects in life.

Debbie from IL

Mark, I just a few minutes ago finished your wonderful story about Sprite and Pepsi. A fellow dog lover gave me a copy for Christmas and I have to say that your story moved me to laughter and tears, lots and lots of tears. I currently am “dog mom” to three wonderful dogs, Bear, age 9, who was adopted from the Delaware County Humane Society as a pup; Odhinn, age 8, who my husband found a few days into January of 1999. He was cold, hungry and had broken free from whatever he had been tied to. His 6 foot swingset chain had gotten caught on an old piece of machinery in the back of the lot where my husband works. We have no idea how long he’d been stuck there, but he was not in very good shape and was only about 8 months old at the time. I was talking to my husband on the phone as he was sitting in the car, waiting for it to warm up, before heading home for the day, when he spotted this little red dog out in the back of the lot. We hung up and he went out to get the pup and ended up bringing him home. Read the rest of this entry »

I am not quite finished with your book…but I know exactly what you are going through…we just put our beloved Penny down…at Old Mill Vet also. Dr. Hussien was so kind and considerate also…The staff was also so caring and compassionate. Penny was the smartest, sweetest dog and we still miss her every day.

Mary from VA

Dear Mark,
Just received your book, “Rescuing Sprite” for Christmas, and couldn’t put it down. You said in your book, that you had doubts about writing it because you didn’t think anyone would want to read it. Boy, were you wrong! Look what you’ve started. Just as you were bring Griffen into your lives, my family was losing our dog of 15 years, Shorty. I thought you might enjoy reading the following story that my daughter wrote about our little dog. As I’m sure you have figured out by now, you’re not alone. I wish your family all the best. I hope you enjoy the following story:

Shorty was a great dog. When I say “great”, I don’t mean grand or beautiful or strong. He was just a great dog. We got him when I was eight. He was supposed to be my brother’s fifth birthday present but I always thought I bonded more with Shorty than my brother did. Maybe because I named him. Maybe because I’m the one that was holding him when he jumped out of my lap (I was sitting in the door way of the storage building) and broke his leg. I think it was my fault because I tried to catch him and probably just tripped him up. Read the rest of this entry »

Mark, I read your book, Rescuing Sprite, on Christmas Eve day. My heart broke for you and your family and the pain and guilt you have gone through. 8 years ago I had to end the love of my life’s pain and I am still not past the quilt. I wish I could go back and do more for her. Everyone tells me that it was time and she was ready, but when I look back I cannot see that. I can just feel my pain of losing her. I feel your pain. When a furchild dies from an accident or dies naturally it is a completely different set of emotions than when you are the one to decide to end their suffering.

In your book you talk about how special foster dog families are and I want to tell you that my family which consists of me, my husband, and our own 3 (rescued) furchildren are a foster family for Carver Scott Humane Society in MN. I thank you for the kind words you said of us. We love each of the furbabies that have stayed with us until their forever people came to claim them as much as our own much loved boys. To us they are all the same. But what I want to share with you is this; when you get to pick the home they go to and you know it is a better home and life than you give them, it is worth losing them. Yes, I do cry at every adoption, but it makes me cry more for all the dogs I cannot rescue. My husband and I take in the husky and husky mixes and furchildren with issues. Read the rest of this entry »

Dear Mr. Levin,

Thank you for writing you book about Sprite. I received the book for Christmas.
First of all it is ridiculous that anyone would think political conservatives do not love animals. My husband and I have cried for several days while reading your book.
Secondly, thanks for the attention this book gives to rescued animals. We are involved in two rescue groups, one group for Golden Retrievers and one group for any dog or cat that needs a home. Sprite looked a lot like a golden retriever. Besides the golden color, and soft fur he had that sweet face and ears that my Missy had.

We got involved in memory of a dear rescued Golden we lost to cancer five years ago.
We do fostering, home visits and intake. Fostering is difficult the foster parents get very attached but the goal is to train and prepare the dog for its forever home. We cry each time we place one of our foster dogs with a new home, but we know it is best for them. A home visit is when a member of our group visits the prospective new owner to see if they are worthy. This is done after a phone interview and a reference check with the people’s vet. Intake is when the member goes to check on a dog to see if we can take it into the program.

A foster failure is when the foster parent adopts the dog. We had two foster failures. They both died this year. Samson was an owner release because after ten years the owner’s had a child and the child was allergic to dogs. We were supposed to foster him just until he was treated for heart worms. Then he was expected to go to a group that deals with older hard to place dogs called ‘Old Gold’. We fell in love with him when we saw him dragging a young vet technician across the parking lot. He was big and fuzzy and loved to play and swim. We called him ”Baa” because he looked like a big red sheep. He died June 9, 2007. We did not have to play God, but we were not with him either. He died at our vet’s office from a tumor in his lungs we will always miss him. We had him with us for 28 months.

Missy was fourteen when we rescued her. She had been a drug and search dog for two years. Then she was given to an old lady that could not take care of her. She spent the next twelve years tied up in the basement sleeping in her own waste with only a filthy blanket to lie on. Occasionally she would be tied out in the back yard. Read the rest of this entry »