The owner opened the gate to our yard and the dog ran to greet him with great excitement. But he immediately ran back to me and looked up into my eyes. Then he went back to the owner but again returned to my side. I think he wanted to show me that he loved me too. He eventually settled down and jumped in the guy’s car and he was gone.
I went inside but the house was quiet and felt empty. It always does when they leave, but this was an especially warm dog and he’d been there two weeks. So the house felt really empty.
We do this a lot. We lost our beloved dogs a few years back and instead of replacing them decided to do dog care. People bring their pet to our house when they go away. The dog is nervous and full of anxiety to be left behind in a strange house with strange people.
We do what we can to make them feel at home. They gradually settle down and sleep next to us and rise with us in the morning and walk and play with balls. We feed them and make sure they have water. They snuggle and we pet them and some lick us and we scratch their bellies. We send the owner photos to show them that their doggie is all right and they can rest assured that he is in good hands, safe and cared for.
We’re a perfect combination—we need them and they need us.
And then one day the owner comes back and takes the dog away. We’re getting used to it. It’s the way of life we choose. We don’t want to go through the heartbreak when they pass on, but mostly we do dog care so we can be flexible to spend long periods in other places. It’s a constant lesson in life--loving and losing. Love as much as you can knowing that one day you will lose your loved one. And the more you love, the more sadness and grief you will feel when you lose that loved one. But love also knowing that you will never lose the love itself, and in that way the loved one is always with you.