To our friends, and donors to Shayna’s Health Fund: Shayna made her journey to Heaven on Wednesday, March 26, 2014. I had no rational choice but to facilitate this journey. Read the details, and all the positive elements of the end of her Earthly life, here.
On Wednesday March 26, at about 4:30pm, Shayna made her journey across the Heavenly bridge. In the past I’ve advised dog parents who had to say goodbye, to write a letter to their best friends, to tell them what they meant. I realized it was time to follow my own advice. This is the result.
We are more fortunate than I could possibly express, to enjoy this kind of fun after the recent, tragic news. For more positive news, see our recent photo-burst, of Shayna during a ride to one of our favorite haunts: 08Mar14: Photo-burst: Our ride to a shopping center for a walk A preview: . . . […]
To Shayna’s friends, and donors to her Health Fund: Despite all the misfortune that I describe in my book, that affected both Shayna and me as youngsters, and me recently, I still have many reasons to feel like the luckiest guy I know. And this feeling undergirds me as I write this, such a difficult […]
[From Shayna]: On October 30, 2012, I was diagnosed with something really bad, and was given one day to four months to live. February 1, 2014, Daddy and I celebrated “Fifteen-Months-Plus-One-Day!” Watch the video at right, and click “Continue Reading,” below, to see how well I’m doing. Love, Shayna!
After six years of development, the e-book “Saved By Shayna: Life Lessons From A Miracle Dog,” is finally done! Clicking “Continue reading,” below, to learn how you can read excerpts of, and buy the book!
In this video, I wanted to get a combination of Shayna’s top three skills: (1) Retrieving toys by name, (2) Stacking her ring toys, by name, on a pole, and (3) Retrieving one tennis ball or two, depending on the command (“counting”). I was able to get it all in just four minutes. Enjoy! […]
After memorizing the names of fifty toys, being able to retrieve and put them away by name, stack her ring toys by name on a pole, and perform lots of other tricks, could Shayna learn to play “the shell game”? Watch this video and find out.
December 18, 2013 To: Ms. Daphne Durham, Publisher, Amazon.com Adult Trade & Children’s Books From: Jon Sutz Dear Ms. Durham: Congratulations on your recent promotion to head up Amazon Publishing. I am writing to share with you a serious technical problem within Amazon software, affecting self-publishers of pictorial e-books (like me), which I believe […]
This feature was filmed in mid-October (the story page, with complete transcript, is here). I thank the WRIC reporter, Amy Lacey, for doing a really good job in presenting Shayna’s story, and that of the other dog parent who was featured. (As opposed to another news story on us that was done by a local […]
(Last update: February 3, 2014) Shayna’s Health Fund – summary WHO: Shayna is a twelve-year-old Border Collie-Husky mix. She is the focus of an e-book I’ve written about how the “right” first dog can transform a person’s life: “Saved By Shayna: Life Lessons From A Miracle Dog,” now available at Amazon. Here is a short […]
Previously: Happy “Eleven-Months-Plus-One-Day!”; Happy “Ten-Months-Plus-Three-Day!” A quick summary of Shayna’s status as of November 1, 2013: Shayna seems to be doing amazingly well. She overcame the salmonella poisoning (the second incident this year!) that afflicted her for about two weeks, in late September and early October. Her activity level is amazingly high. We are […]
By Shayna To my friends, and donors to my health fund, thank you for all your support and prayers. (If you’re a newcomer to my site, welcome! See our previous entry, “Happy Ten-Months-Plus-One-Day!” here.) Here’s the cover of this month’s card: And the interior: Daddy helped me to customize and print out versions of this […]
This is the latest in a series of updates to bring our friends, and donors to Shayna’s Health Fund, up to speed on the latest concerning her health, life and outlook. If you’re new to this site, or want a refresher on Shayna’s medical conditions, see previous updates: July 14, 2013 update: Shayna’s continuing […]
Come along with us as we drive to the University of Virginia, then do our toy training. As you can see, Shayna was absolutely delighted. Keep in mind this video was taken 10 weeks after she endured heart surgery. Be kind – you’ll hear me singing an adapted version of The Temptations’ classic “My Girl,” […]
A continuing series of updates for donors to Shayna’s Health Fund, and our friends and family. See the last update here. Introduction Today is my birthday. According to medical science, Shayna should not be here to celebrate it with me. Yet as the pics and videos contained in this update show better than any […]
One recent warm afternoon, Shayna and I were sitting on the patio at Panera, when along came an acquaintance of ours and her niece, Katie, who’s all of three years old. Katie (nickname: “Katie Bug”) and Shayna instantly fell in love, and is just as sweet as you can see in these pictures. She brought […]
Shayna made her journey to Heaven on Wednesday, March 26, 2014
To our friends, and donors to Shayna’s Health Fund: Shayna made her journey to Heaven on Wednesday, March 26, 2014. I had no rational choice but to facilitate this journey. Read the details, and all the positive elements of the end of her Earthly life, here.
The aftermath: Agony, and beautiful magic
. Continued from here As I walked out of the clinic, after Shayna’s journey to Heaven was facilitated, and the cold air hit my face, I looked at my truck – the truck that was the only vehicle Shayna had ever been in, the truck in which she had so many wonderful memories – I […]
The days that led up to Shayna’s journey to Heaven
. In our last update, on February 27, I described the following: Shayna’s belly had become a bit bloated again. Dr. Paling, our cardiologist, confirmed through the use of ultrasound imaging (a) the presence of fluid in Shayna’s chest and abdomen, and (b) the tumor at the base of her heart had grown so large […]
I’ll have more to say about this issue (much more) in coming posts here, and here. For now, I happened across this segment from ABC’s “20/20” program, and from what I’ve recently learned (some of which I discuss in my book), this is really just the tip of the iceberg. See more US News from […]
Is Kroger engaging in willful ignorance?
You be the judge. I took the following pictures on Nov. 9, 2012 in a Kroger in Charlottesville, VA. (FYI, Kroger is one of the world’s largest grocery retailers, with over $90 billion in annual revenue.) In the dog food aisle I saw “Natural Flavor Unbasted Rawhide Twists for Dogs,” produced by “Pet Pride”: […]
Emergency Care & Poison Control Hotline
Info on the 24-7 Animal Poison Control Center Hotline and other resources to access in emergency situations.
On Wednesday March 26, at about 4:30pm, Shayna made her journey across the Heavenly bridge. In the past I’ve advised dog parents who had to say goodbye, to write a letter to their best friends, to tell them what they meant. I realized it was time to follow my own advice. This is the result.
Sixteen-months-less-one day; prayer request
To Shayna’s friends, and donors to her Health Fund: Despite all the misfortune that I describe in my book, that affected both Shayna and me as youngsters, and me recently, I still have many reasons to feel like the luckiest guy I know. And this feeling undergirds me as I write this, such a difficult […]
Happy “Fifteen-Months-Plus-One-Day”!!!
[From Shayna]: On October 30, 2012, I was diagnosed with something really bad, and was given one day to four months to live. February 1, 2014, Daddy and I celebrated “Fifteen-Months-Plus-One-Day!” Watch the video at right, and click “Continue Reading,” below, to see how well I’m doing. Love, Shayna!
27Dec13: Shayna learning to play “the shell game”
After memorizing the names of fifty toys, being able to retrieve and put them away by name, stack her ring toys by name on a pole, and perform lots of other tricks, could Shayna learn to play “the shell game”? Watch this video and find out.
24Nov13 Triple training delight
In this video, I wanted to get a combination of Shayna’s top three skills: (1) Retrieving toys by name, (2) Stacking her ring toys, by name, on a pole, and (3) Retrieving one tennis ball or two, depending on the command (“counting”). I was able to get it all in just four minutes. Enjoy! […]
14Aug13: Ride to UVa, and toy training
Come along with us as we drive to the University of Virginia, then do our toy training. As you can see, Shayna was absolutely delighted. Keep in mind this video was taken 10 weeks after she endured heart surgery. Be kind – you’ll hear me singing an adapted version of The Temptations’ classic “My Girl,” […]
What a beautiful video. How fortunate are those who embrace, value and honor its message.
Austrian research: Dogs can sniff out lung cancer
As if we didn’t have quite enough reasons to be thankful for dogs: Dogs are surprisingly adept at sniffing out lung cancer, results from a pilot project in Austria published yesterday suggested, potentially offering hope for earlier, life-saving diagnosis.
Lab to get heart surgery – by human heart surgeons in France
This has got to be the luckiest dog in all of France. 9-month-old Lycka, who lives with his dad, Christian, in a Paris suburb, was diagnosed as having a serious heart abnormality, that veterinarians are not capable of solving. So Lycka is going to have his heart repaired, by human heart surgeons. Although the malady […]
Connect
Connect with us on the following social media platforms.