I had my best friend and soul dog pass away unexpectedly in March of 2023. He was only 8. He was my baby since 2014 and he was with me through so much in life. He was perfect, slept with me at night, had the right amount of playfulness. Just my perfect dog despite the fact that he was far from perfectly trained. He was still just essentially my soul mate in dog form. I wasn’t with him when it happened, which has only given me a ton of guilt on top of the awful grief and heartbreak. I have dreams constantly where I’m trying to find him and help him come back to life. There isn’t a day that passes that I don’t think about him.
I since have tried to tell my boyfriend over the years that I want another dog. Tried to explain how life without a dog feels incomplete and just different. How much love could be introduced with a new dog. After a little more than three years together, he relented and decided we could get one. We saw an adorable girl who needed a home and met her. She’s only two but she’s extremely well behaved and is a sweet dog. Everything went well and we decided to bring her home. The day after we brought her home, I fell into deep depression and I have been bawling my heart out every single day since. I miss my old dog and I didn’t realize that bringing another dog into my home would trigger me so hard. I know it’s not this lovely new girl’s fault. I do like her. I just can’t feel the same connection and I feel so guilty for having her when I feel like I let him down and like he should still be with me.
Has anyone else experienced this? Does anyone have any advice on how to live on without my soul dog while also accepting a new dog into my life?
submitted by /u/Novel_Researcher8755
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