We lost our beloved Beagle – Copper – in August. We adopted her when she was 4 and she lived eight wonderful years with us. She was such a huge part of our family. She shared the same vet as Sprite- Old Mill Vets in Leesburg. They took such wonderful care of her. We now have a beautiful Bichon but she can never take the place of Copper in our hearts. She has her own little corner in our hearts instead.

– Dawn from VA

I and my family also adopted a dog before he has sent back to an unknown fate.

My wife and myself have always had animals as we grew up,however I’d never had my own dog until I was 31 years old. Long story short, when we meet, she had a Labrador and the idea came to me that two coupleswould be a good idea. WE picked out a Chocolate Lab puppy from a friend as a date and took him home a couple weeks after that.He was named Chuck (a combination of Chelsy and Buck, his parents name). Before we moved to Florida we hade 3 Labs and 3 cats.
Fast forward to 2004. As will happen with all animals, a time comes where the end has to be dealt with. This is not easy nor pleasant because we all know that a dog’s mind is still sharp while their body deteriorates to a point of no return. It is a quality of life issue that has to be addressed however Painfull and Tearfull.

The two of us came to the point that we knew it was time to make Chuck more comfortable. This was especially hard for me (he was my First dog).

I carried Chuck into the Vet. in my arms that day We had called ahead to make sure the office would have as few people around as poosible because we knew tears would be flowing, they were. When we entered the office there was a Sheriffs K-9 deputy in the waiting room. We continued on to the exam room and the final good bye was performed.

We left through a side door to our car a cried some more. As we stood there the Deputy came up and talked to us and related that he understood our pain and said he too had tears when he saw us come through the door with Chuck. After we became composed a bit, he mentioned a dog would be available for adoption when the time was right.

Every night from that point on I noticed a message on the Vets.billboard about a Lab for adoption as I went home home. After a month I stopped and asked to see the Lab. I was taken back to the kennel to see him. He was about 2 years old and could have been Chuck’s brother! I called my wife and daughter and asked them to stop by on their way home to see Dropper?(Deputy/Trooper combination name). He was a Belgian breed Lab that failed out of bomb/drug training and was on his way back to the supplier but was saved by the Deputy’s wife who worked for our Vet (the same Deputy who had talked with us when we took Chuck in). The girls(wife/daughter) fell in love as I did and I picked him up the next day.

I took him to my fire training right after I picked him up to see how he would react to to the noise of 2 engines and lots of new people to make sure he was OK with people and such,TROOPER at this point(not Drooper) was not phased at all. He was very friendly and not rattled then and has never been since, even during our two hurricanes. He has turned out to be the THE most mellow, loving bigger dog a Family with frequent child visitors could hope for for.

– Kent from FL

I am the lucky owner of an unusually large German Shepherd. On December 31st, 1999, I adopted him from a local animal shelter and named him Millennium. The volunteers at the shelter said he had been tested by the County Fire Chief but he failed a “smoke” test. Millennium weighed 65lbs at 6 months old and was very tall and long the day I signed my name to the adoption papers.

Today, he is at a sustained 118lbs., but with a few health problems. He has been the unfortunate genetic recipient of Lupoid Onychodystrophy and Nodular Dermatofibrosis. Lupoid is a condition that has affected his nail growth. After 5 years old, he began to grow brittle and deformed nails that would cause discomfort. Sadly, there is no cure. I keep the nails trim and take him for daily morning walks. HIs other condition is more serious and has been very costly. Dermatofibrisis is mass tissue tumors that emerge from under the skin and need to be surgically removed. I had three recently removed. One was the size of a softball on his chest, a second was between his toes and the third was on his right elbow. The growths on his foot and elbow were about the size of a golf ball but they were noticebly causing discomfort. My vet has said that eventually these tumors may cause renal failure. Despite these possibilties, I will continue to pay the vet bills on time and pay the mortgage late! Enclosed is a photo of my Shepherd after his recent surgery. If anyone has had any success with treatment for these conditions, please post your dog’s story.

Thanks!

– Eric from FL

I have to tell my story about my 3 year old dachshund named Callie.

She was our fith dachshund and she was the happiest and sweetest dog we have ever had. She never got upset when we had to go off and she was a dog that wanted to sleep in every morning. She was always under her covers and when she decided to get up, she would get up. During the day she would love to go outside and chase the squirrels who liked to tease her. At night, she would have to get out all of her toys and play tug for almost a half an hour.

On the night of Aug. 13th of this year, she wanted to go outside, so I let her out. A few minutes later I heard her barking ferociously, so I went to check on her. I saw her lunging at something and then I heard her yelp. She went out in the yard and just stood there. I opened the screen door and could make out the back of a snake with copperhead markings. Needless to say I knew Callie was in trouble. I went out and brought her in the house. I yelled for my husband and we took a quick look in the yard for the snake so we could kill it, but it was gone. We then rushed Callie to our emergency clinic. After they had examined her, they told us that she had been bitten on the tongue. Knowing what venomous snakes can do to a human, I knew Callie would have a hard time coming through this. The doctor that took care of her tried his best to help her but she had to be put to sleep on Thursday, Aug. 16. I have grieved over Callie more than any other dog that I have had. She was our special dog and we miss her very much. She made us laugh all of the time at the things she used to do. A week later we got another Miniature Dachshund and we have named her Lacy. I still miss Callie very much but Lacy is making me laugh again. Lacy is the most cuddly dog we have ever had and she is filling the paws of Callie very well. I already love Lacy very much, but one thing is for sure, I will never forget Callie.

Thank you Mark, for the opportunity to share my story.

My Cat (Lover) was rescued with her brother & sisters from the swamps of South Carolina when I found her during military training in the early 90s and was my first pet after returning from Desert Storm. After returning home to Michigan and 8 years into her life she became Diabetic and I could barely afford the daily injections and tests, but I managed it somehow. At 14 years old she lost the fight with Diabetes and I have to believe that animals have some idea of heaven. As she was passing I held her to my chest and sat in her favorite chair by the window. With her last breath she gave a muffled meow, reached up and touched my chin, and then looked and reached up to the sky through the window as she left. I have no children so she was truly a loss of a family member.

– Joe from MI

Hello Mark,

I work for Barnes and Noble at the Palisades Mall and jumped at the chance to help setup your book signing (I’m in the minority at the store, but I wore my home-made “Win with Levin” button with pride. I could tell by your warm personality in having my picture taken with you, that you had to be a dog person. We are after all, “compassionate Conservatives.”

I am on my 7th dog and lost my German Shepherd “Benny” over a year ago. He was 8 and I could tell something was up because of his slight moaning at night when he moved. Turns out he had some sort of leasion on his spine and one day at work I got a call from my mother that he was dragging his back legs in great pain. After some tough decisions about the cost and tough post operation (he would need to be held up with a sling while going out. My elderly mom would never have been able to do it and his quality of life wiould have been bad. So we went through the “decision.”

It took about 7 months to decied on another and I decided to go to The North Shore Animal League where I found a wonderful little brindle colored 2 month old with purple splotches on his tongue. He is my best friend and perfect for my mother and I at 32 pounds. Today is his first birthday.

“If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.”
— Will Rogers

Jeff  from NY