I’ve been a dog lover my whole life. We’ve lost 3 German Shepherds in my 32 years and I dread the day that the 2 I have now pass on. They were the first that were truly mine and depended on me for everything. They’re older now and I think about it every day.

It can take years to get to know a human but a dog can melt your sole and steal your heart in hours.

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of hosting a Canine Explosive Course flunky. They weren’t prepared for a flunky of his caliber and expected him to be going to Iraq. Always a sucker we let him stay for a couple days. Determined not to get attached I attempted to keep my distance. This guy just wouldn’t allow that to happen. Three days later when the company called with his travel arrangements and told us he would leave the next day, my 3 year old and I cried. I still tear up just thinking about him. THREE DAYS! It only took THREE DAYS to fall in love with him.

We still miss him. He remained a flunky and was sent for more training. At least I know he isn’t in Iraq though, he was soft and didn’t have what it takes to make it over there. He’d rather be on the couch I’m afraid.

Thanks for your book, your show, and this forum….

Jessica from VA

We met Mickey at the emergency animal hospital on the horrible day that we learned that our golden retriever would not survive her bout with pnemonia. Mickey was brought there by the beautiful people from Eleventh Hour Rescue, in an attempt to save his life. It was fate that Mickey would survive his bout with parvo, a life threatening puppy disease, and our fortune to be able to adopt him.

Mickey has been the light of our lives for the past three years. His needs were simple. He wanted to be near us…on the couch, sleeping in the bed, playing in the back yard, traveling in the car…but he was so timid with strangers, that in June 07 we decided to get a puppy for Mickey, to keep him company while we were away at school and at work.
Our new pup, Molly loved Mickey. We had many hours of pleasure this past summer watching them play and rough-house together. Three year old Mickey was like a puppy again!
In August, Mickey was diagonosed with a brain tumor. The tumor was aggressive, and in two short weeks, it completely diminished Mickey’s quality of life. We tried every medical intervention at our disposal to abate the growth of the tumor, but we were unable to save Mickey. We needed to make the tough decision.
My husband, sons and I were present in a room of the same emergency animal hospital that we met Mickey in three years ago…this time to say goodbye to him.

We are better people beacuse Mickey was a part of our lives. That is not what we expected when we adopted him. It happened because we loved him. God bless Mickey and Sprite, and all the animals who need us, and who save us.

Joanne from NJ

I was so involved in hearing your story of Sprite and putting him to sleep that I cannot remember driving home from work tonight. I just put our Boykin Spaniel, Chloe, to sleep after discovering a huge tumor of the spleen and liver. She was 13 and adored by all of us. The vet gave me the diagnosis in the morning and we agreed to put her to sleep at 4:00 in the afternoon. She told me to be back at the vet with my husband but go home and love her and give her anything she wanted. I did just that – fixed her a pimento cheese sandwich, a hershey bar and a small amount of ice cream. She was thrilled and then we lay on the floor and cried and cried until we took her to the vet. It was very peaceful, private and dignified. We went back later to pick up her ashes and then the vet sent us a wonderful children’s style book called Dog Heaven by Cynthia Ryland. All the staff wrote a personal message in the book – it meant so much. Tell your wife, Kendall, hello for me. She sold my stationery for years (Kiddie Kards). I so enjoy hearing you with Sean Hannity. You have inspired me to get another dog.

Beverly from GA

This is what I call my ‘spiritial dog story. ”
I have owed many dogs in my 49 years. I have loved each of them but there is one dog who I knew for a brief 2 months. It is her story that affected me in a very unique way.
In route to the store, I slowed down to say “hi” to my neighbor. She asked me if I wanted a dog and showed me the dog who had been hanging out in the neighborhood. It was early December, cold and the dog looked kind of pityful. I said “no, we have our black lab and I can’t take in another dog” and drove off. The second those words came out of my mouth it was like I knew they weren’t true! It was like the words became jumbled up in my brain. It was an odd moment-what I call a “spiritual” moment.
I went on about my life and about a week later I heard something outside my front door. There was the dog on my front porch. I got her a clean bowl of food and water and placed it outside. She accepted it and as I spoke soft words to her, I realized that she was exhausted!
She allowed me to take her to our fenced in back yard. She paced and paced- she wanted out but something told me to keep her in the yard so she could rest. And rest she did. After a few days she let me give her a bath. Needless to say, she became our dog and we loved having two dogs.
The check up at the vet’s held some bad news for us. She had heartworms.The vet treated her for the heartworms and she came through it all beautifully.
Two months later my husband woke me up early and said that “Casey” had died in her sleep on the couch. It was heartbreaking.
I became depressed. I sat out in the backyard and it felt like a black cloud was over my head. I cried and cried and couldn’t stop. I cried more for this dog that I only knew for 2 months than any other.
I finally couldn’t shake it so I prayed to God to please give me “peace” about Casey dying.
That night I had the most incredible dream. I was in a place far away. There was a big body of water with a big cliff in it. There was Casey and I ran to her and was so happy to see her. Somehow she let me know that she was fine and I was happy!!!!
When I woke up, I instantly remembered the dream. I got out of bed and I felt strange. I felt like I had travelled a great distance that was “up” and far away. I didn’t feel grounded. I walked around the house for about 30 minutes before I felt like myself.
God answered my prayer because after that dream, I never cried for Casey again. God had given me peace!
God does put things in our path and its up to us as to how we react to it.
I leave you with a sentiment that I say to people who have lost beloved dogs. I let them know that it is sad that God has given a dog so few years to live but if he gave dogs the same years as humans, we would only have one pet in our lives to love. God’s design allows us to have “many dogs” with a variety of pets to love in our lifetime!!!!

Tracy from Florida

I call this story what I do, because both of my dogs were poodles. I got the first dog; her name was Ivory, from the Humane Society in Sebring, Florida. She was a pure breed white poodle and she was the most beautiful little girl I have ever seen. When I went to sign the adoption papers, I saw her and immediately fell in love with her and knew I wanted to take her home. So a few days later after all the papers were filed and the vet checked her out she finally got to come home. But she came home once before that and we had to return her, because by law she could not be taken home since she was not spayed. So we had to take her back and she knew it and hid under an end table and being a big guy I picked up the table as my brother picked her up and we had to return her and got her back the next day. She was home with us and stayed that way. A few weeks go by and we went and looked at another poodle and his name was Popi. Read the rest of this entry »

Greetings, Mark! This is one of the coutless stories about my boy, Bowser. Back in 1983 my mother had passed from metastatic pancreatic cancer. She had lived for more than 4 years, which by today’s standards is unheard of. My brother and I went to a breeder in NJ to purchase a yello lab puppy. When Gordon, the breeder, opened the pen and released the sea of tumbling, bounding yellow puppies, I watched in awe. One puppy in particular left his jumble of brothers and sisters and purposefully walked over to me and sat on my foot. This was the one. He picked me. There was nothing I could do about it. It took alot of fighting with the breeder to sell us the puppy, not because he wanted him, but because he was the “runt” of the litter. Well, this “runt” grew to be over 120 pounds! In addition, he was born house-trained! Yes, he pooped once in the house, and that was it. When I would walk him, he never needed a leash. He would be right at my right hip and stop whenever I would. He understood complete sentences, with multiple commands. Of course he was a house-dog, never having to bear the indignity of being chained to some tree in the yard. People who do that to their dogs don’t deserve to have them. Bowser and I were insepparable. He had to be in contact with me constantly, or at least, have me within eyesight or it sounded like the the end of the world. My bed was his bed, or, more correctly, he allowed me to sleep in his bed…LOL! I never minded sharing my bed with Booze because, even at 120(+) pounds, he allways wanted to snuggle with me. Many times he would make this little sound and jump on the couch. For the next 10 minutes or so, he would stare, unmoving, into my eyes. The overwhelming feeling of contentment that I experienced was indescribable. Over his 13 year life he brought me more joy and unconditional love than I will ever be deserving of. In addition, he saved my life when I went into anaphalaptic shock and got my brother to help me. His favorite game was “get the stick”, which, I am certain, needs no description…other than the fact that he knew what the words meant. He was allways energetic and happy and the most wonderful dog you could ever hope to be blessed with. That is why his hip dysplasia and degenerative spine disease was so torturous. For the last 2 remaining years of his life he was almost 100% incontinent, had no use of his hind legs, and panted constantly, which indicated pain. My brother and I did all we could to ease his suffering including operations, cortisone shots and pain killers. They did help, but not enough. In 1994 I moved away to take a new career and I felt like such a traitor to my Booze, but I knew he was in good, loving hands with my brother. I had been in my new city for a little over a week when I had a dream. In this dream Bowser and I were playing “get the stick” and he was his old energentic, pain-free self. The odd thing was that he wasn’t a puppy, but looked the same way he did when I left. The sky was blue, the sun warming. I lay on the warm grass with Bowser and he just looked deep into my eyes like he had always done. After a time, he curled up next to me and rested his head on my shoulder. I could hear and feel his breath on my ear, as well as the funny little contented sound he allways used to make. Well, I woke from the dream feeling very content and happy. Roughly 10 or 15 minutes later I received a call from my brother. He had no choice but to put my Booze to sleep that same morning because the vets couldn’t control his pain. My Bowser, my boy. He had eased the pain of loosing my mother, saved my life literally from anaphalaxis, and had been my true friend and companion for 13 years. Now, he had come to see me one last time; not in pain, but as he was when we were the happiest. It was his way of letting me know that, not only had he passed, but that he was happy and pain free again. I flew out to California the next day to bury him and spent the next 2 days crying uncontrollably. That was 12 years ago and, although the pain has been blunted, I want my boy back. My consolation is that he is happy, pain-free, and waiting for me when it’s my time. I thank God Almighty, and Bowser, for considering me worthy enough to enjoy my time with him. I also thank God Almighty, and Bowser, for considering me worthy enough to see Bowser one last time in my dream. I am fully confident that Bowser’s beautiful spirit had visited me and I am truly greatful and humbled that he would do that for me. I loved Bowser as a son and, for as hard as it was for me to lose him, I could NEVER imagine the pain of losing a child. That is why I am so greatful to our brave men and women in our armed services, as well as to their parents. Thank you all and God bless every one of you for your sacrifice, patriotism, and unyeilding selflessness.

Tom from New Jersey