This one sounds like a tear-jerker, sort of along the lines of "Marley and Me"...I can't read those type books, cause all I can think is what it will be like when it happens to MY dog :(
But, for what it's worth, Koontz also has a book called "Watchers"...it's one of my absolute favorites. Parts of it are sort of gory, but the gist of a the book is that a lab has made two dogs, one a horrible monster, (where the gory parts come into play), and the other is one that the owners are actually able to teach the dog to communicate...
I guess that one speaks to me cause I'd REALLY like to know what my dog is thinking most the time :)