Yep we do. You come home without your best bud and he is everywhere and nowhere. His dishes and his sleeping spots are empty. His favorite toys are here and there. No more play. His leash is hanging by the door. No more walks. It is gut-wrenching.
Six months later if you can do it, you have a new pup. And he steals your heart. Twelve years later, he’s slowing down, can’t play like he used to, sleeps for hours, and can’t hear you calling him inside anymore. You use hand motions to call him in. The Sherriff isn’t on duty so much anymore. God, how you love that good dog. And you know you don’t have years left anymore. That’s where I’m at now with my Riley.
I know there are people who think Levin is a moron for mourning that dog. But I get it. Completely.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwGnCIdHQH0&list=RDCMUC7McHNOsrUL2fRxTB_xvgRQ&index=3
Good post.
I’m retired and have a 7 y/o Labradoodle. We are together 24/7. I’m already dreading the day that he leaves and goes to heaven. It’s going to be hard. Real hard.
I get it, too. My childhood dog, Heidi, died when I was fifteen, and she was nineteen. We’d carry her up and down the stairs to do her business, because she was still there upstairs, but her body was failing; she kept having strokes. We had to euthanize her on my birthday. Worst ever.
Three months later, we took in a dog that a friend of my little brother’s had, and the dog was abused. A 3-month old American Eskimo Dog. She had a ton of energy, and the family had no clue what to do with her. They were the types that bought puppies and they dumped them when they were no longer baby-cute.
Juneau was with us for sixteen years, but both her mind and body deteriorated. The dog that laid around with me when I was home from school, puking in kidney failure, was not the same dog. She was doing her business inside, and she would walk into a corner and just cry unless someone was holding her. That was really hard, because I’d stay up at night and keep an eye on her. A couple of days after Easter, we brought her into a veterinary ER and she had to be euthanized.
The following September, I adopted a Boxer Pitt mix from CACC in Chicago. She’s incredibly sweet, and she’s become my shadow. She knows when I’m sick and will keep me company, or try to comfort me. She’s also a therapy dog, and I’m working on training her to perform some service dog activities. I’ve had her for almost two years, and she’s been wonderful. She and I are so attached to one another, so I dread putting her down. I almost hope she dies at home, where things are familiar and comfortable.
PFL