No Life Too Small: Love and loss at the world’s first animal hospice
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(as of Nov 01, 2025 01:11:01 UTC – Details)
As seen on Channel 4’s Steph’s Packed Lunch!
No Life Too Small is the joyful and inspiring story of the world’s first animal hospice, celebrating the power and beauty of nature, the strength of the human and animal spirit, and the importance of love, friendship and community. It will leave you with a tear in your eye, a smile on your face and a renewed belief in human kindness.
A few years ago Alexis Fleming was bedridden with a chronic illness. Things became so bad that she wanted to end her life many times during this period – but her beloved dog, Maggie, kept her going, especially when doctors gave her just six weeks to live.
Incredibly, Alexis fought her way back to health with Maggie by her side, only for Maggie to die of lung cancer two years later on a vet’s operating table. Alexis was devastated that Maggie had died without her and decided to start an animal hospice in her name in the hope that she could ensure other animals nearing the end of their life would not have to die alone.
Six months later, the Maggie Fleming Animal Hospice was launched. Alexis has turned a dilapidated farm in rural Scotland into a haven for animals to live out their last days in comfort and at peace. With the help of the local community, despite many challenges, the hospice came to life.
Meanwhile , Alexis’ own health was deteriorating again and she needed life-threatening surgery. Alexis came through the operation and the road to her recovery was paved with companionship from the animals in her care, particularly Bran, a dog who had been dumped with terminal cancer and given six weeks. He recovered alongside Alexis and went on to live for two more years. Dogs, however old and mangy, chickens, sheep, goats, pigs, cockerels and even turkeys : The Maggie Fleming Hospice is a place where all manner of terminally-ill, abandoned animals come to live out their last days in comfort and are treated with love.
Looking after dying animals has taught Alexis what really matters in life – kindness, compassion and love.
Publisher : Quercus
Publication date : July 8, 2021
Language : English
Print length : 304 pages
ISBN-10 : 1529411645
ISBN-13 : 978-1529411645
Item Weight : 1.12 pounds
Dimensions : 6.3 x 1.42 x 9.37 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #1,431,622 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #200 in Death, Grief & Bereavement Fiction #215 in Biology of Dogs & Wolfs #389 in Pet Loss Grief
Customer Reviews: 4.9 4.9 out of 5 stars 143 ratings var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });

B.T. –
I am an avid reader, and I am a pretty demanding one. I had high expectations for this book.I was really looking forward to read it, not only to support the wonderful Maggie Fleming Animal Hospice, which I’ve been knowing for about 4 years, but also because it’s a real story, a heartfelt one.It’s as joyful as life can be, and as excruciating as death always is.It’s an incredible adventure, superbly well written.It’s intense, hilarious, bittersweet, wise, painful, exciting and honest.I read it in a weekend as it was extremely fluid, and basically you can’t keep but immerse yourself in it. And it’s all worth it, from the first to the last page (lovely pictures included!).Alexis is an amazing person, not only for founding the hospice while fighting for her own life, but also for being brave enough to lay bare her personal story, her struggles, her fears, and her mistakes. Because the hospice wouldn’t exist without her personal journey.It all takes one person’s dream and determination to make the world a better place for many many souls.If you’re (or you know) an animal lover/advocate or on the contrary a person who doesn’t know much about animals, a caregiver, a person with a cronic disease, a person struggling with mental health, a person who enjoys reading true stories… To all these people I would 100% recommend this book.No life is too small, whether human or non-human, no matter how short it could be.Love, care and company are the only things that truly counts, for everyone. Unfortunately, many animals have the opportunity to know what friendship is only for one day, the last day of their life.Thank you, Alexis.
Gisela Rao –
A very amazing and sensitive person and book
Mongrel Mad –
I hesitated to order this as the subject isn’t exactly cheery. But oh how wrong I was. Beautifully written with such humour, and of course sadness but with such love, emotion, and compassion. Anyone who has lost an animal will absolutely identify with Alexis, her experiences, thoughts and emotions. I read this in a day and feel better for doing so. You read about the worst of humans and how they treat their animals and then there is the absolute best that is Alexis Fleming, despite her gruelling health issues. Thank you for doing what you do seems such a trivial thing to say but it is so heartfelt.
Kenneth Trueman –
Arrived on time in good order. A wonderful book of love, hope and courage. Makes you laugh and cry but mainly shows how every life matters however short it may be.
Anne Conroy –
This book has pride of place on my bookshelf and collection of favourite books. Alexis puts her heart and soul , blood sweat and tears into running this wonderful animal hospice, her book made me cry and made me laugh also as she tells the stories of animals lives she had loved and lost all while battling her own horrendous health condition which came nail bittingly close to ending her own life. A terrific read of lives of these beautiful animals she cares for and each of their funny endearing characters shines through in this beautiful book. A MUST READ FOR ALL ANIMAL LOVERS ðð¥°ð¾