We are often asked why Letters to Dogs? Why did we write it? Where did the idea come from?
In 2021 after my wife passed away from a short, but shocking battle with cancer, my children and I decided we wanted to adopt a dog. We went to our local shelter, spent time with several pups and finally decided to bring home the infamous Toby! He immediately became a source of laughter and immense frustration. Anyone who’s owned a pet understands the joy and difficulty that comes with the territory. Toby was all over the place from high energy to sweet cuddles and disastrous destruction. Toby quickly became a source of joy and recovery. We did all the dog owner things…. we purchased all the toys, costumes and Avengers T-shirts, picked up the cool water dispensers, self distributing food containers and ergonomic pet beds we could find. This time brought us so much happiness and bonding and created adventures on hiking trails, dog parks, creeks and streams and everything in between. We made dog friends and fostered more pups to help them find a home like Toby had with us.
As we always have, we found comfort in humor and acquired so many stories of other dogs we would tell over and over until our faces hurt from laughter. At the urging of others hearing us tell our stories we decided to compile them into the collection we have today. Letters to Dogs was created out of a difficult time and finding joy in our pet companionships, but it also brought us closer as a family, created a source of healing and spurred us on to honor their mother and her love for teaching and writing. The process was so much fun and has taught us more than we could have ever envisioned. Our goal was to create a space for families to put down their phones, get off their computers, find adventure and create lasting memories. We hope that goal is being accomplished and ask you to share your own stories by reaching out to us!
To learn more about the process of publishing this book, check out this link from our friends and partners at Market Refined Media.
