Dogs never die. They are sleeping in your heart.

January 30, 2017 1:00 PM

I wrote this several years ago in memory of Bolo, a black and white Pit Bull who would always go for a walk, right up to the day he died. He might only get 15 feet before he stopped and looked at me and gave me the look: "I can't go any further. But don't you think for one minute I'm done walking."

Here are 20 more essential facts dog lovers must always remember.

(DogHeirs previously.)

posted by Johnny Wallflower (18 comments total)

This always makes me weep. Excuse me.
posted by twilightlost at 1:02 PM on January 30, 2017 [5 favorites]

Just this morning I threw out my Max's stuff: the thundershirt that never worked, the insulin refill label, the leash and harness I used with him after he lost his sight. He died in fucking July and until this morning I kept that all in their usual spots. I've had dogs my whole life but Max was just special to me and I guess that's what they mean by "heart dog."

Dogs, man. They're the best but oh so hard so hard so hard when they go.
posted by kimberussell at 1:16 PM on January 30, 2017 [21 favorites]

kimberussell Two years later I still have some of my Bella's favorite toys in the living room. It just feels wrong to get rid of them.
posted by mcduff at 1:47 PM on January 30, 2017 [5 favorites]

I think that first piece makes me cry harder than anything else related to pet loss. Good god, but my heart can't bear re-reading it today.

It reminds me, though, of a comment someone here made a while ago, asking if any other MeFites feared the death of their dog more than their own death. And my answer to you, o commenter whose 'nym has been lost to the sands of time and my memory, is yes, yes, I do.
posted by amnesia and magnets at 2:22 PM on January 30, 2017 [4 favorites]

Dang, the pullquote in the post title made me tear up . . .

We have a copy of Dog Heaven hidden in the basement for when our sweet, sweet Addie dies and we need to tell our youngest son. She is mildest, most gentle creature I've ever known. This winter's the first I haven't seen her romp in fresh snow like a pup. She's getting a little older, for a dog.
posted by Caxton1476 at 2:45 PM on January 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

I read only a few sentences before the Onion Chopper came for me.

There's the Dog Chapel, on Dog Mountain, in Vermont. Welcome all breeds, all creeds, no dogmas allowed. (Trigger warner: you'll remember the dog/s you've loved...so here's to Sandy, Champ, Musty, Heather, Bonnie, and Laddie, and may Zephyr live well and forever running through my days.)
posted by datawrangler at 2:57 PM on January 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

oh my. every time i read this i cry. i guess my first dog was my "heart dog" - i don't know how i could love a pup more that i loved Kingsley. Friendliest most handsome boy in the entire world. i keep his collar near my door and i always touch it before i leave the house in the morning, thinking about the walk i'm not taking him on.
I LOVE DOGS. I'll get another dog when I finish being in a touring band that's away for weeks at a time - but I almost don't want to because it won't be my gentle jolly friend Kingsley.

My parents never let me have a dog when i was growing up because they said it is too sad when they die. They were right. It is too sad when they die. But it's also too sad to live without one....
posted by capnsue at 5:22 PM on January 30, 2017 [8 favorites]

I feel a bit broken these awful days because the only thing that still makes me ugly cry is pet deaths and losses, esp. dogs. I worry that I'm a bad person, sometimes, but so long as I still feel these things, I'm not completely lost.
posted by allthinky at 5:30 PM on January 30, 2017 [4 favorites]

I still sleep with my Marie's ashes in my bed next to me. It's been 18 months. I make urns for others for a living. And I am still not ashamed. I will get in bed, adjust her velvet bag, and sleep well...
posted by Vaike at 7:58 PM on January 30, 2017 [2 favorites]

My family lost our childhood dog in 1999 and we still talk about him all the time.
posted by zutalors! at 8:21 PM on January 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

I will never stop missing our poodle Arrow. He was a good dog. And so smart, although he was always a little off after the seizures started. He died as a casualty of that melamine dog food tainting incident.

The loss of a beloved pet stays with you down deep, just like the loss of a human loved one does. We were out of town when Arrow went and we felt miserable; we hadn't known how seriously ill he was; he was being boarded while we went on a family trip to Chicago. We came back and he was already gone.
posted by saulgoodman at 8:34 PM on January 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

I know a few people who used to have dogs but don't any more. I used to think it was because of convenience. Now I wonder how many of them just can't face another loss. (Me: November. Not getting "another one").
posted by superfish at 11:05 PM on January 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

I grew up with a neurotic dachshund named Tilli.

Thirty-seven years later I still cannot bear to discard the grey sweater she wore in the snow. It still has some of her fur stuck in the fibers, and when I see them, I cry.

Now I have a parrot.
posted by kinnakeet at 1:50 AM on January 31, 2017 [5 favorites]

We had an absolute shit show of a year a few years ago that involved a lot of grief and loss, including, among other things, the death of all of our pets in quick succession. I still miss our dog and one cat in particular. After 18 months we felt ready to get a new dog, and he's been great, but we knew going in that he wouldn't be a replacement (nor should he be!).

I will probably continue to miss my "heart" cat and dog till I die.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 7:38 AM on January 31, 2017 [2 favorites]

You all get favorites from me
posted by Caxton1476 at 8:22 AM on January 31, 2017 [1 favorite]

Yeah, I lost my heart dog in December due to an unexpected heart attack. Cookie was easily the best dog of the nine I've had a part in caring for. It's not even close. I still cry. It's quieter now, but the tears still come when I take the rest of the pack for a walk. My wife still bursts into uncontrollable wails that hurt deeply. It's an event that if I weren't already an atheist, would drive me to it because of the patent unfairness of it. The main reason I want to be wrong about the afterlife - so I can see my dogs again.

We have a little altar with her ashes and collar and favorite toy - the one we brought home with her from the shelter. Her fur is in a little photo album along with most of the photos in that album.

But we're rescue dog people and one of our rescues was her "puppy" and was just as lost as we were. (We caught her sleeping next to Cookie's collar a couple of times, so.. yeah) So we took the love we had for Cookie and went and found another goon in need of a home so we could keep her spirit going. That's how we ended up with Hugo two weeks ago. He's done an amazing amount of healing work, but I still miss my Cookie girl fiercely.
posted by drewbage1847 at 10:51 AM on January 31, 2017 [2 favorites]

The stained glass at the dog chapel is heartwarming. I love the single panel, featuring a dog's face in profile, with a single word below it: "friend."
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 3:37 PM on January 31, 2017

One of my dogs just died this past Friday, and it's been hard. I appreciate this.
posted by byanyothername at 9:55 AM on February 1, 2017 [1 favorite]