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Over our 50 year marriage we've have 3 children plus dogs, cats and fish. The kids and grandkids don't live anywhere near. In 1999 we got a Pekingese dog. A sweet 10 lb little girl. She was about 6 then and we had her until she was 13. When she died the pain was great for both of us. We got another peke several months later. He grew to 20 lbs, probably a mix but looked like a peke only. He died last year at 14. We decided, being in our 70's now, that we would not get another pet..physical and financial situations helped make that decision.
I would have to say that the last two dogs, which were the only pekes we ever had, were missed much more than dogs of the past, which we loved but not to the degree of the last two.
I've had four dogs throughout my adult life. When each one passed, I've been sure I'd never be able to love another dog as much. And with each succeeding dog, it has taken a year or two, but I find myself feeling just as much love. The relationships are different, to be sure, but the bonds have all been strong and so rewarding.
I do have to admit that I had one dog who got me and I got her right from the start - that made falling in love with her even easier.
All of my dogs have been loved and cherished by me but yes, a few have been what I call heart dogs. I've been blessed with 3 heart dogs in my 60+ years. The first was my Chesapeake Bay Retriever, Maggie who I rescued in South Georgia. Once she realized that I was her human, the bond was incredible. I even had strangers comment about how much her loved me when they saw her look up at me. It was most definitely the strongest bond I've ever experienced. She traveled all over the Caribbean , Florida, Georgia and Maryland as I worked on different construction projects. The second was my black Lab named Gator. Gator was dumped on the side of the road in a very rural area when he was around 6 month old. He would follow me everywhere and was happiest when we took long walks. He had a wonderful quirky personality. He would never lick me but would super sniff my whole face to show affection. The 3rd is my Rhodesian Ridgeback, Ruger. Ruger was found emaciated and horribly bitten after being abandoned in a forested area in Texas. Its speculation but I believe he was a bait dog. Whenever I leave to go somewhere without him, he howls. Any threat to me is met by Ruger putting himself in front of me and softly growling as a warning. At the same time, he is gentle with people that are kind to him. His favorite spot is cuddling over my lap. For me, heart dogs are rare but your time with them is incredibly and truly special.
I have loved all my dogs a lot! But one dog was what I call my “heart dog”. We adopted him from a rescue group-he was abandoned in a junk car and found by police in Chicago. He was already a senior boy, and lived only about 15 more months. He was a joy every single day. The rescue named him Brutus because he was a big, husky Boxer. The name didn’t fit him at all and we called him Sam. Everyone in our neighborhood loved him too.
Update - I just adopted another dog so now I am up to three. This one is a 12 week old female puppy who is super smart - she's a blue heeler/Rotweiller mix. She's so funny! I am crazy about her but of course in a different way from the other two older dogs. I've had her for nearly a month now.
I love/loved them all, but the one we had to put down in 2016 was the worst to get over. She was 16 and when we got her at 9 weeks, she helped me through a most difficult time in my life.
She gave me confidence I'd lost, and a reason to smile. She'll always hold a special place in my heart, but I have lots of room in my heart for the others too
We've had as many as six Japanese Chins at the same time. All were loved and scrubbed and scritched. Then, Naomi, a Chin-Spaniel mix came to us from Death Row. She and I bonded. We were peas and carrots. When we had to send her to the Rainbow Bridge in March, I sorrowfully admitted "now I know what an emotional support dog is." She was my heart, all the years we had her. I still go to Petfinder to find another "Naomi," but like a poster noted above, you get to an age where it just isn't practical. The one thing I fear most about aging is leaving a pupper behind.
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