Angel Pawprints: Reflections on Loving and Losing a Canine Companion--An Anthology of Pet Memorials

What a wonderful book! A well-chosen selection of tributes and memorials spanning many years, many dogs, and many people. Reading these words, you are assured that you are not alone in your grief...so many others have loved their dogs deeply and felt the pain at their loss. There are some absolutely beautifully written poems in this book. I bought this book last year after I had to put my dog Sparky to sleep. He was 16 years old and sick, but that didn't make it any easier to lose him. I bought many books on pet loss, and this one has been my favorite so far. I would highly recommend it to anyone going through this themselves; it would also make a heartfelt gift for someone you know who is dealing with the loss of their furchild.

This book is an experience not to be missed; but just asanother reviewer said, it is perhaps best to wait until the hurt ofthe loss of your beloved pet has diminished somewhat.For those who have suffered over such a loss, until very recently there were few books that addressed the grief of pet loss, or anything to do with the subject.Now, at last, there are several books out addressing the subject from different perspectives. Since it is still not easy to find them, I would like to present a short list of books, several of which will be of great comfort, in my opinion, to those with a fresh loss, as well as those who have not yet been parted from a beloved pet. These recommendations encompass different ways of presenting the subject of animal afterlife. Since there is no category as of yet specifically on animal afterlife, on-line (or in any other lists for that matter), I hope this will be of help to anyone who is searching for comfort; I could not have coped without books like a number of these. "Cold Noses at the Pearly Gates".Excellently done: inspired compassionate, fully-Biblical"The Soul of Your Pet". Convincing, credible evidence regarding animals' existing after death. Interactions with pets that have passed on. Will defy skeptics. A chapter on animal intelligence and one on various religions as well as the many recountings of incidences mentioned above."Will I See Fido in Heaven?". Solidly Christian, inspired,loving; includes passages from 2 books of the Apocrypha that address the topic, as well."For Every Dog an Angel". Angel stays with pup from birth, on; we eventually are reunited, each "forever person" with his or her "forever pet(s)". Written for children, adults will love even more. Wonderful!"Dog Heaven". For children; adults will enjoy as well"Cat Heaven" Children/adults"All Dogs Go to Heaven". Well-known, has a story-line.

Angel Pawprints is a book every pet owner should purchase. When the inevitable time arrives and the cherished pet dies, this book will give support and comfort through those terribly sad and trying days and even years to come. Be sure to have a hanky at hand because the therapeutic tears are guaranteed to flow. "Pawprints" is a wonderful collection of sensitive poems and insights on the gift of love our animals bestow on us in their too short lives. The vintage photographs are a bonus.

I am an avid reader of science, sometimes though it can be so dry and devoid of emotion. It trys too often to explain the inexplicable. For example, a recent article in the Atlantic Monthly was titled "Why your dog pretends to love you." It explained the genetics of dog behaivor. It really missed the point though of the human/dog relationship. It is not about behaviors, it is about love. For all its attempts, love is one of those things that science just cannot adequately explain. There is no grief greater for a human than dealing with the loss of love. Also, it seems, there a few bonds of love stronger than that we have for our pets. We feel so hopeless when we lose what we love, our grief seems to have no bounds. It all seems so hopeless. What this small book does is address, in a wonderful way, that grief. People famous and unknown share their thoughts on the loss of their cannine companions. In no way though is it ever morbid or indulgent. If you have lost a cherished dog companion I highly recommend this book. It is full of what you need the most-hope.