All I kow is that I lost my rescue 12 year old black lab on September 10, 2019. He had advanced hemangiocarcinoma. We went in for shots and tags, and came out with terminal cancer. We got him when he was 6. So we only had a short time with him. He was a terribly misbehaved and confused pup. He drooled eveywhere. Stood and stared at the wall for hours on end. He was so weird sometimes. I think he was abused before he came to us. Stole food. Ran for the hills when he slipped out the gate. Had no interest or ability to understand playing ball or whatever. He chewed through door trim when left alone too long. He shed mountains of hair. But . . . the more people hated on him, the more I loved him. He crawled all over me when it rained or thundered. But I got sick for about a year, and was in and out of the hospital. When I fnally came home for good, he led me everywhere. He never left my side again. Couldn’t even go to the bathroom without that greying snout poking through the door. We had two last terribly hard weeks together. Then, late one night he began to pant and crawl on me, and I knew it was time to go. He refused to go inside the vet’s office and I fell and broke two ribs trying to push him in. The vet looked at x-rays and the cancer was pressing into his lung. I had to decide to take him home and have one more day, or let him go. I’ll never take a few precious hours away from another dog again. I regret my decision every day. I killed my dog before he was ready to go. Every second counts. And yes, it is unconditional love. I hope and pray every day I will see him again. Love them with all your heart and soul. They are one of God’s greatest gifts. And we really don’t deserve them. Yet there they are.

I can really relate to your comments about “Aunt Marie.” You’ve pretty much described my mom, lol.

Thanks so much for a great and thought-provoking read.

I remember back then I lost my dog (a dachshund) , and only to find her later in a neighbour’s home far from my home, when saw me, she greeted me and waggled her tail, not barking! I was very surprised because she still remembered me. I didn’t take her back home because she seemed happier in her new home – my dad is a dog breeder and he always caged his dogs. I always tried to find time to walk them, but it’s hard when there are 3-4 big dogs to give attention to.

I’m in some serious need for advice. I’ve wanted a husky ever since I was a little girl (my cousins and I played “dogs” and I always pretended I was one), and now I’m about to graduate and will finally be able to get my own dog. I’ve had dogs before (rat terrier/schipperke(spelling?), a chow/lab, & spent a lot of time w/Australian shepherds, pitbulls, and my good friend has a husky), so this isn’t my first rodeo. Like I said before, I’ve spent a lot of time with the husky up until he was a year and then I moved down to school so I haven’t been around him since. I want one sooooo badly, but I do not EVER want to be at a place where I think I couldn’t handle one of my own. I have heard equal sides that say they’re the best dog breed to have and then some who have literally stated that they thought the dog would break their spirit. It is my biggest fear to have a husky and it not obey me. I know they require extensive training and I know, as with any dog, you need to show them who the alpha is, but I’m nervous. I guess my question to you is: how do you know if you’re making the right choice? I’ve researched them for hours on end and I think I would be an excellent owner, but then think about the fact that maybe I will have bad luck and get the most mischievous one in existence. HELP!

I don’t know if our dogs truly love us, but…my in-laws had a Maltese. She was sweet and got plenty of attention from all of us. My MIL and BIL(his dog really) were her main caretakers, fed and walked her and such. My FIL would play with her occasionally and pet her in his favorite recliner. When my FIL passed away she would lie in that recliner and make little crying sounds and look so lost for hours. It was heart wrenching, I mean we all missed him terribly. There were always plenty of family there to give her attention. We would sit in that recliner, pet her and it just would not perk her up like when he did it, she just wasn’t having it, she just wanted to be left alone in that chair. She missed HIM, not the petting or attention that she could get anywhere else, I think that’s love.