Henry
We said goodbye to our best friend Henry this past Sunday. I know everyone says that their dog is the best, but Henry truly was the best of dogs. He was gentle, and patient, and so so smart. He loved to play tug of war and go for runs and long walks and to sit in the sunshine and watch the world go by. Car rides made him so happy. So did soft serve ice cream and cheese and belly rubs. He hated thunderstorms and cardboard boxes and the sound of crowd noise during sporting events on tv. He’d race around the dog park trying to herd all of the other dogs and would always pick up the pace on our walks if a jogger passed us, because he had to be in the lead. Sometimes he’d get in a fight with the coffee table just because, and it was never really clear who won. Henry loved people, and he stole the heard of every human he met. It was impossible not to be charmed by his big brown eyes. We are so grateful that we found Henry through MARS. His profile is still online from when we adopted him: https://www.midwestanimalrescue.org/animals/detail?AnimalID=947714 . He was 14 and a half when we said goodbye, and we know how lucky we are to have gotten to spend so much time with him. He made every single day that he was in our lives better. Still, we thought we had so much more time. The end came really quickly, and it was hard to watch our playful, alert, and happy dog’s body fail him so suddenly. We are absolutely heartbroken and our home feels empty and wrong without him. There’s not much about the past year that has been good, but we are thankful that we were able to spend literally every one of those days with Henry. We were able to give him extra time to chase squirrels and roll in the grass and play in the fresh snow. We will treasure those extra hours forever. Goodbye, Henry Bear. We love you so much. Joe and Stephanie

Jaxson
He was the sweetest, most gentle dog we've ever had. When we first brought him home, we were advised he did not pass his "cat test" however, I feel that deep down he wanted to be a cat given his love of kitty cat toys. He loved to find his place on one of our boys' beds or curled up on the couch only taking up his one cushion...for a dog of his stature, this was quite impressive! He had the quirkiest head tilt when he'd hear the words, "want to go for a...." or "cookie", loved to come wake us up in the morning with his silly growls, groans and sniffs and had a tendency to scare anyone with his bark albeit he was nothing more than a cupcake in a big German Shepherd body. Then his eyes got milkier, he could no longer hear when we called him and his hips started to sag until his body just finally gave out. Id like to think he persevered because he had life left but being the noble one, we know he persevered only for us. We had to let Jax go on July 9th and it wasn’t at all easy for us but it was what he and his frail body needed. Many kind thanks to MARS and all the folks who find homes for these loving animals. I'm a firm believer that rescues are the best and when the time is right, we plan to make another visit to help give another dog they're forever home. Blessings, Tracy, Steve, Reece and Nick Hawkenson

Buck aka Prince
My four-legged best friend crossed the bridge. He suffered from degenerative myelopathy -- degeneration of the spine. I bring his boxed ashes outside where he used to lay and in the bedroom at night where he laid down to sleep. He was an unusually active dog, living his walks every day and throughout the winter months. He was kinda crazy too. Dennis and I are going to miss him so much after having him for so long. He was 12. We knew it was his time so we made that dreaded decision to let him go. He left this world peacefully. -- *Mary and Dennis Abel*

RosieMae
I wanted to let you know that my poor little Rosie Mae is in heaven now. She and I were only together a for a short time, but she gave me so much joy. At the time I needed some help, she came around. I helped her and she helped me. Unfortunately, she just wasn’t a healthy girl, and I had to make the hard decision yesterday to let her go and not endure pain anymore. She will always be in my heart. My first little girl dog and definitely my little sweetheart. Such love for her. She is going to be missed so much.

Blondie
Blondie was our foster for a year and a half, the last months of her long life. Despite her status as a senior and a refined elderly lady, she was spunky, spry and feisty. But above all she was loyal and devoted, mainly to me, her foster mom. During the eighteen months that she was with us, she only had two inquires from potential adopters. I was not so secretly happy that she continued to be passed over for younger dogs as that meant that she would have more time with us. Blondie’s energy belied her fourteen years of age. She never saw a squirrel that she didn’t want to chase, a kibble in one of our dogs’ dishes that she didn’t try to steal, or a space near or next to me on the couch, chair or bed that she didn’t want to jump up on to occupy before the others. She was my shadow that followed me wherever I went and lovingly gazed at me wherever I was and whatever I was doing. Blondie died July 31, 2017. The day before, she had unexpectedly suffered a seizure. Less than twenty-four hours after that episode, she was dead after suffering several more. As I held her in my arms as the second seizure overtook her, I knew that she was dying. I said my goodbyes to her, giving her one final kiss as I put her in the backseat of the car on her way to the vet. We know nothing about the first 13 years of her life, but know that the last eighteen months were filled with the love, comfort and attention that she deserved.