Hey, I just read your book rescuing Sprite and I cried and mourned. I felt such love in the story and was so overwelmed thinking about how much joy our pets bring to our lives. I lost my precious Spencer this July to cancer. He was an 8 year old chihuahua that was my best friend. He had the best personality in the world. He loved to walk, ride and play games. He had his favorite spots to sleep in and his favorite toys. I always knew I would dread the day he died but I had no idea that he would die so soon. I still cry and I feel such a huge void in my life. It was one of the most horrible losses I have ever experienced and will remain in my mind forever. I told my husband that I never wanted any more animals besides the ones we had. I also have three more dogs. But the very next week he went and bought me two white chihuahua puppies who I just adore. They are so much fun. They have helped with the healing process but the pain is still there. I I just thank God that he has given us such great creatures to enjoy in this crazy world that we live in. What a precious gift. Thank you for writing the book and sharing your stories. Im sorry for your loss and I truly know how you feel. Thank God for people like you who love animals and who are willing to give them a good home. Sprite will remain in my thoughts forever as will my precious Spencer.

Michelle from NC

Today, just a short while ago, I picked up the cremated ashes of Taylor, our family’s lovable 9-year-old female Chinese shar-pei. Although she had a few physical difficulties all her life, she had only begun seriously ailing for the past few months. We got the bad-news diagnosis of lymphoma on the 7th (my birthday and also the first anniversary of the death of Mark Levin’s dog, if I’m not mistaken). Ten days later, this past Monday, although we were hoping beyond hope that she would have a miraculous turnaround, our vet decided it was time to put her down. I had held Taylor, at that point a 40-pound dog that had rapidly lost 15 pounds, on my lap in the waiting room. I wrapped my body around her as she trembled in my arms, her heart pounding away. In the examining room, after the decision was made, I requested she be sedated first. After my wife gave a tearful hug and goodbye while Taylor fell into her fiinal slumber, she left the room with my 4-year-old son while I stayed with Taylor during euthanasia, and then I left the room too, quietly devastated.

Taylor, a fawn colored dog, and her littermate brother Pitch, who is a black bull of a dog and still going strong, were with us in Phoenix where we lived until we moved here four years ago. We called Taylor “the sunshine dog” because she would love to lay in the Phoenix sun, soaking it up until even she couldn’t bear it.

I’ve attached a picture of Taylor taken in our yard during the blizzard of February 2006.

I want to wish all the pet lovers out there a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, especially those of you who have had to lay their pets to rest, especially during the holiday season. God bless.

Michael from NJ

Mark thank you for that wonderful book, I only cried once but it lasted the last one hundred pages. we just put down our sadie-may down two weeks ago a yellow lab mostly white about like sprites snout. we have had dogs most my life this one seem so special, friend to many, but very protective of her family, she would wait for the school bus two hours every day to walk our son up the driveway, we had her 12 years. reading your book really hit home. thanks.

Greg from MN

MARK:
GREAT BOOK!!!! I CRIED. WE HAD TO PUT OUR 3YR OLD CORGI “ROCKWELL” TO SLEEP THIS PAST JUNE.. HE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH CANINE LYMPHOMA IN JANUARY. WE DID THE BEST MEDICAL TREATMENT FOR HIM WHICH GAVE HIM ANOTHER 6 MONS. ON 1 OCCASSION AT THE VETS’ RECOMMENDATION, WE WERE SCHEDULED TO PUT HIM DOWN, I COULD NOT DO IT. HE SEEMED SO ALIVE. THEN ONE DAY HE COULDN’T MOVE AND HIS BREATHING WAS LABORED. I WAS IN COMPLETE DENIAL BUT I KNEW I COULD NOT KEEP HIM SUFFERING. I AM CRYING AS I WRITE THIS, I MISS HIM SO.

BUT SHORTLY AFTER ROCKWELL LEFT US, MY HUSBAND COULD NOT SEE ME SOO SAD, SO HE CONTACTED A BREEDER IN CHARLES COUNTY AND SHE SAID SHE HAD A LITTER OF CORGI PUPS SO WE DROVE DOWN TO HER FARM AND I WOULD HAVE TAKEN ALL OF THEM BUT THERE WAS ONE THAT HAD THE SAME COLORING AS ROCKWELL BUT SHE SAID THAT SOMEONE HAD A DEPOSIT ON HIM MY FACE MUST HAVE FALLEN TO THE GROUND, SHE CAME OVER AND SAID THAT THE PERSON WHO HAD A DEPOSIT ON THIS LITTLE GUY COULD PICK ANOTHER PUP. WE TOOK “LITTLE ROCK” HOME AND HE TURNED 8 MOS. ON DEC 15TH. BUT AS MUCH AS I LOVE HIM I STILL MISS “BIG ROCK”

THANK YOU FOR WRITING YOUR BOOK.

Joanne from MD

Mark, just finished your book about Sprite, loved it and felt your loss as i ‘am now on my 3rd rescued dog. I lost my Duke in 1995 and then got Jake and lost him in 2006 and now we have “Bo”, Bo is a 2yr old yellow lab. He was tied up all the time and never allowed in the house, no vet. care and was going to be put down. i found him at the shelter here and we brought him home. He came in the house-babtised my flowers and was afraid of everything from the dishwasher to the doorbell.

He has been with is now for a year and is so loved and gives us so much love everyday. We have a downs snydrome son who lives with us and Bo just seems to know that when todd walks him he has to be gentle . He follows me all around everywhere i go and loves to sit up close and be petted. We took him to obedience school and he took 2nd place.He just seems to know how much we love him and what a good home he has to live in. He travels with us and loves to go in the van for rides.

I’m positive we were supposed to adopt Bo as in all my serches on the internet i kept comming back to our local shelter and there he was so went to see him and the rest is history. God Love the Dogs.

Jan from MI

Mark, I have listened with great admiration to your stories about Sprite and your love for him. They say you can tell the measure of a man by how he keeps score in golf (Bill Clinton cheats! – enough said) and how he treats his dog. I don’t know if you play golf but you sure love your dogs. In August our newest dog, Bennett (yes named for the Secretary) showed up at our door. We posted flyers and eventually found the owners who obviously did not want him back. So, we are now the proud parents of an 11-year old Golden Retriever. What a sweetheart. Merry Christmas, Mark, and thank you for the gift of Rescuing Sprite.

Jim from OR