Dear Friend,

You spend every day with someone precious. Your pet. Yet, despite your best protection and care, your pet can't live forever.

Since you are visiting our website, you are probably living with a pet who is:

• struggling with a terminal illness
  
• suffering from severe injuries
  
• deteriorating from the effects of a long-term chronic condition
  
• coping with the debilitating consequences of advanced age

Right now, you need credible information, along with emotional support, so you can care for your beloved pet -- and yourself.

Soon, you may also need information and support so you can say good-bye in a way that is painless and peaceful for your companion animal.

Hello. My name is Laurel Lagoni and I have been a leader in the field of pet loss support for the past two decades. Along with Carolyn Butler, Dana Durrance, Dr. Steve Withrow, Dr. Suzanne Hetts, and others, I co-founded and developed Colorado State University's grief support and education program to help veterinarians and pet parents like you deal more sensitively and effectively with companion animal death and euthanasia.

Today, this program is called the Argus Institute for Families and Veterinary Medicine and is one of the most respected and comprehensive programs of its kind in the world. I'm proud of the 20 years I spent building this program at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at Colorado State. I know I made a difference in people's lives.

But the development I am most proud of, and most excited to share with you, is the pet loss support keepsake we call ClayPaws®, the original paw print kit™.

If You Worry about How You will Feel
Connected, Even after Your Pet Dies,
We Have Your Solution

When your pet dies, you'll say good-bye to the day-to-day interactions that bring you so much joy...the excited greetings when you return home after work, the sweet, eye-to-eye talks, the warm, evening snuggles on the couch. I know it will hurt to lose such a close friend, a being who feels just like your own child.

But saying good-bye doesn't mean forgetting. When your pet dies, it's natural to want to stay connected to your memories -- to your pet's heart, soul, and the very essence of his or her being. Have you longed for a way to remain linked to the unique spirit of your beloved pet?

ClayPaws®, the original paw print kit™, provides a link to your pet that is personal and real. Now, before you have to say your final good-byes, you can make a print of your pet's paw and create a unique, permanent keepsake. Diane L. in Acworth, Georgia did and here's what she wrote to us about it.

ClayPaws® prints are a wonderful product. When you lose a pet many things run through your mind about how you can keep the memories alive. My ClayPaws® print is a lasting memory I can touch and feel. Anyone who ClayPaws® kit.

The World by the Tail staff truly care about pets and the people who love them. Thanks for a great idea!"

ClayPaws® kits began with the tearful request of an insightful pet owner who had brought her dog Mikey* to the veterinary hospital at Colorado State. Cora* wanted a meaningful memento to keep her connected with Mikey while he underwent a very risky surgery. To comfort Cora, we made an impression of Mikey's paw using casting material. The process was messy, time consuming, and too expensive to provide for clients on a regular basis. However, Cora's response to our memento -- joy and gratitude -- convinced us that this gesture was worth our continued exploration.

When Mikey died unexpectedly a few weeks later, Cora called to tell us that his paw print was now one of her most treasured possessions.

It was then that we fully realized the significance that our crude, amateurish little paw print held for people who loved their pets. We decided to perfect the paw print process so we could offer this lasting memento to grieving families everywhere.

During the next year, we experimented with many different clays and modeling compounds. We tried products that required water to be added and those that simply air dried. We tried extremely soft clays and cement-like mixes. Each of these methods had potential, but for use as a permanent memorial, the 'cons' still outweighed the 'pros'.

We were looking for a material that was easy to use, but would create a permanent, lasting keepsake. The product also had to be fairly inexpensive and able to hold the paw impression while being decorated and baked. We were excited about one product that was soft, extremely easy to use, and simply air dried, but, after testing it, we found it was likely to crack and even break apart after a short few months, causing pet owners to lose their
precious memento.

Finally, we found the right modeling compound and combined it with convenient packaging for use in your own home.

*Details drawn from an actual case, but pet owner and pet names are changed to protect privacy.

Now, You Can Make ClayPaws® Prints, too!

To us here at World by the Tail, Inc., ClayPaws® kits are more than a product -- they are a symbol of our hearts reaching out to yours.

By providing ClayPaws® kits for you, we can let you know that we understand your loss and truly care about you, as well as your pets.

ClayPaws®, the original paw print kit™ has been a featured product on Animal Planet's Petsburgh USA. In 2000, it was one of the winners of Cat Fancy Magazine's Editor's Choice Awards. Pet owners, veterinarians, and animal health technicians have praised ClayPaws® kits and have sent us dozens of testimonials about this product.

"What a wonderful group of people you are. Through our vet we received a ClayPaws® print of our dear little dog. We had her 15 years and miss her terribly. Our ClayPaws® print is a constant source of pleasure and along with her tag and a picture keeps her close to us still. Thank you so much for our memorial to Annie."