This is a few weeks overdue now, but I wanted to write and thank you for an amazing gift that you played a part in giving to my family, without even realizing it. Amy and I have only owned purebred vizslas in the time that we’ve been married, a breed we love due to their temperament with children, intelligence, lack of shedding, etc. Our first dog, Jack, lived to be 12 years old and we now have Rusty, who is 7.

You, obviously, have Fletch…who I love following via your Facebook postings. I still remember your original postings from when you first brought him home, as well as the column you wrote about that experience, and I developed a dog-crush on him right from the very start. I think he’s one of the coolest dogs ever and I love everything you post about him to this day. In short, you (and Fletch) have shown me what an absolutely positive and amazing experience you can have by adopting a shelter dog. Years ago, I wouldn’t have ever considered adopting a rescue dog because I believed that I preferred to “know what I was getting” with a purebred. I’ve since changed my mind on that, and you and Fletch are a big reason.

This brings us to…Kathy Hart, here on Facebook, “shared” a photo of a rescue puppy looking for her forever home a few weekends ago and I fell in love with the dog from that one picture. We hadn’t even been remotely looking for another dog, but once I saw her, I had to have her. It all happened really fast…I saw her picture late on Saturday night, submitted an application with the rescue agency on Sunday, and that Monday night we brought her home. We named her Elsie and she is the new queen of the house…our little diva. We all love her so much and I’m still finding myself feeling anxious to get home to see her as the workday winds down. We have a fabulous new member of our family and you actually played a role in that.

So THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for the positive experience that you and Fletch continue to demonstrate. I learned a long time ago that when people make a difference in your life, you should let them know.