Throughout my life I have always been surrounded by dogs in spite of living in an apartment in the city. The minimum was 2,at times as many as 5.
Exactly the same as humans,all are or were unique individuals-splendid specimens of pedigreed standards or mixed breeds of unknown heritage .All were either brought in directly from the street in very poor condition or given to us. We usually had large sized guys and they all understood their position inside a household and there was only the rare ,quick fight for dominance which ended as soon as they heard the command “out!!!!!”
Some were incredibly intelligent with an ESP quality about them while others were simply lovable dummies.A few had remarkable drive/motivation and inbred skills for protection and obedience and strove to please.
Others were what we lovingly called criminals and bums. Read the rest of this entry »

Greatest dog faithfulness story — it was Homer’s epic of the Trojan War — part II — the Odyssey — in which Odysseus’ faithful dog Argos was first to recognize the hero upon his return. I can recall holding my breath reading the epic, hoping that the dog would not betray his master with a friendly bark of other form of recognition.

My current dog, a miniature schnauzer, sleeps under the bed with her paws extended under the dust ruffle. The pooch snores in synchrony with my wife.

The pic is with her mom

Jackinnj from New Jersey

Hi,

I’ve been going through some tough times with my dog, Binky. She’s 14 1/2 years old and sick with cancer. I don’t have to tell you how hard it’s been. She’s so tough it’s like she’s pushing ahead out of fear that I’ll be upset. She never lets it get the best of her and she’s always got that lick (bath actually) for me.

I’m dealing with the loss of our cat, he was 7, and that’s been just devasting. I took care of him since he was 2 weeks old. He had feline leukemia and epilepsy. He was basically asymptamatic thanks to the meds, but his loss was a shock to us. He got sick on a Saturday and passed away that Tuesday. While I never thought of him as my ‘baby” I do realize that he was as close to one a I’ll probably ever have.

You said you were so devastated you almost stopped working. I’m so lost that sometimes I can’t imagine how I’m going to go on without him. I’m not alone in this but the pain is so that I can really feel my heart breaking.

Thank you for listening.

Kelly from New York

How I met my best friend.
In 1996, I worked the overnight shift at a local grocery store. One night, while on my way home, I came around a sharp curve in the road and had to stop very short to avoid hitting a stray dog. This poor animal wasn’t trying to run away, or even move from the road. I pulled the car off the road; he stopped and just stared at me. I opened up my passenger side door and said “come on boy, let’s go” to my complete surprise, he ran over and jumped into my car! I took a good look at him, and almost cried. He was emaciated, covered in dirt and fleas, and looked as if he had gone a few rounds with an animal of some kind. I took him home, bathed him about a dozen times, and set up a bed for him in the garage. When I took him to the vet the next day, I was told that he had ear mites, ear infections (both ears), intestinal parasites, and there was clear evidence of abuse. My mind was made up right then….this was my dog now. He was named Henry, due partly to where he was found…right outside the woods. He and I bonded almost immediately, and for about a year, nobody could touch him but me…he would hide behind me whenever anyone tried. He is truly the best friend I have. I hope this story will inspire others to rescue animals in need…the benefits work both ways!

I am convinced that of the two of us, Henry and I, it is I who am the fortunate one.

Mike from North Carolina

my dog(well really my parents,but..),fuggsly,was put to sleep this monday.she was 14,a pure bred basset hound we got at the local spca.she was there because she had alot of minor health issues…multiple allergies that could lead to seizures.but my parents took her and gave her a great life,despite the costs and hassles.she was a sweetheart,got along with my parents cats(they loved her),and was the only pet we ever had that didnt run for the hills when i played my heavy metal really loud.in fact i think she kinda liked it lol.she even survived cancer about 6-7 years ago.cute but tough.last week she stopped eating or drinking,and the vet said it was total kidney failure.this past monday we hugged her for the last time.she even shook my hand(without my prompting).man that was so hard.ive had alot of pets but never knowingly hugged one for the last time like that.i feel alot more alone since then.how ironic i had hannity on tv that same night and you were on,talking about your dog.thanks.it teared me up again,but made me feel better.

James from Pennsylvania

Mark: I read Rescuing Sprite the night of All Saints Day which I thought was very appropriate. Thanks so much for this book. I have included the message I wrote when I lost my dog this past summer. I shared this with my friends and family and now I am sharing it with you and your audience. Zuel is dead. Zuel met his end on Thursday the 12th of July 2007. His life ended suddenly when he was struck by a vehicle on Great Southwest Parkway in Grand Prairie. Zuel’s life ended in his 13th year of life and his 12th year with me. I only learned of Zuel’s death on Tuesday the 17th, for Zuel ran away from home the night of July the 6th. His whereabouts were unknown until I a voicemail was left at my work on the night of Friday the 13th. Josette went to the Prairie Paw’s (our dog pound) on that following Tuesday, for I was unable to get anyone in person on the phone. She got the whole, sad story. It was rather ironic that I had visited the Prairie Paws on that Saturday, but I had not spoken to anyone-I just looked at the dogs they had confined and left. It was hard to look at those dogs knowing some would never find homes.
As far as the night Zuel left, I can just imagine Loby found the gate ajar and led Zuel out to tear into the neighbor’s garbage bags for forbidden food. The neighbors said they saw Zuel heading south around 10:30 PM the night of the 6th. Loby was smart and stayed close to home. I found him in the back yard the next morning like nothing was out of the ordinary. We conducted a frantic search that Saturday, but had no luck in finding Zuel. We continued to have not luck going to the Grand Prairie and Arlington animal shelters and posting notices on the internet. Read the rest of this entry »