When your dog dies .. and you want another one ..

[Fidgety31]

I am seeking some opinions on this as I have not been in this situation before …
my dog recently passed away. He was elderly and with us a long time . He was such an easy dog and really never any problems with him at all.

I am wanting to get another dog .. and have a strong urge to get the same breed again- but is this wrong ? Am I just trying to replace the one I’ve lost ?

what have you done when you’ve been in this situation?

I’ve had three whippets. All boys but got a different colour each time . I know that’s not possible with most breeds but as long as they weren’t the same colour I was fine . All very different but with breed traits . Go with your heart .

Our first Cocker Spaniel died very suddenly when he was just seven. Initially I thought I couldn’t contemplate another dog but within a couple of months I realised that although we couldn’t fill the specific hole Ddog had left in our lives, we still had a dog shaped hole in our lives that we wanted to fill. We did buy the same breed, but we chose a different colour. Both boys. Our second lad has a completely different personality to our first lad, both wonderful, but totally different. Having a dog again really helped us come to terms with the loss of our first one.

I’m sorry for your loss, and I hope that all of this helps you and your family work out what to do next.

I’ve had 5 setters in my lifetime. I just go for different colours each time.

I got another male of the same breed that I lost , tragically at a young age , three weeks later . I live alone and the empty house was deafening 😭.
I was scared that people would judge me but realistically I knew that my friends and people that actually knew me would understand .
My current boy is almost 4 & I have never regretted my decision .
You don’t replace a dog , you just start to repair the hole in your heart and your life that they left behind .
Aldo despite the face I have had 2 males of same breed , they are chalk and cheese in personality and even looks , which in some ways was good for me .
Do what feels right for you x

@Fidgety31
We lost our old girl at the end of June, it was awful and left a huge hole in our home and lives.
We got our new puppy at the end of September - I will say that I had been considering a puppy for a few years before she died and I had been speaking to the breeder for that time so it wasn’t a rush decision.
We went for a completely different breed, that’s just personal choice and I don’t think there is any right or wrong here. Although puppy is only 9.5 weeks old I have no regrets, she’s already brought us so much joy.
Although, I had forgotten just how much work puppies are compared to our old easy girl.
Good luck and do what feels right for you x

I'd had two of the same breed for 12 years. The boy died and then the girl who happened to be my 'soul' dog. I left it a year and then got a very lovely girl, same breed. She's better bred, extremely pretty but problem is I've always compared and, although of course I love her and will always care for her, she's not my soul dog and I shouldn't have tried to replicate. I've added a boy, same breed and it's been delightful. I absolutely adore him even though he's hard work and naughty. When my boy leaves this earth I won't get another boy for some years, if at all. I know I'd be OK getting another girl as I'm not totally in love with this girl.

I'm so sorry to hear about your precious and much loved dog.
When our dog passed I could barely look at other dogs esp the same breed for a good while.
Then I felt I had so much love to give another dog and loving it and providing a good home would be our dog's legacy.
It would've been too hard to get the same breed though and I don't think I'd recommend that although I know some people do. We got a rescue.
Follow your heart. I hope you're ok .

I feel like this. My last dog was a golden/lab mix and I nursed him for the last 3 years of his life and he was my hero and warrior. I knew I needed another dog when he died and because I’d lived with the fact that he didn’t have long for 3 years (he wasn’t supposed to even last that long and he had a lot of near misses) I was already ready for my puppy when he died. Some people called it heartless, but my dog was my life and this little boy is no replacement, but an individual soul that I’ve fallen in love with as himself.
Hes a full golden though rather than half and by god no one warned me about the stubbornness 🤣

We’ve just got another dog after losing our adored bit last Christmas. We’ve gone similar breed (spaniel but springer not sprocker) but a different colour. I was so drawn to the same but my DH thought it wasn’t right and now he’s here I agree, it would have been too close a comparison.
hes utterly gorgeous but I found the first couple of weeks very hard. It made me grieve all over again, I missed my old dog so much and he’d sort of become perfect in my head. I’d forgotten his difficult early days and only remembered how wonderful he was! So much as I’m very glad we’ve got our new boy, it’s been a very emotional time and harder than I expected. We’re getting there, it’s such a joy to be out with him and his energy is a wonder, but just don’t be surprised if it throws you a bit

We went and looked at a litter less than a month after our beloved old dog died. We collected the puppy only a few weeks later.

For us, it was absolutely the best salve. Our house was empty and soulless without a dog. And we were relentlessly sad. There isn’t a day that goes by where we don’t mention the old dog, but the new one has brought us nothing but joy and love. So much so, we have his younger brother now too.

I lost my best friend of 15 years on new years day this year. All my family want a new dog but I feel it is betraying her. I still cry everyday. Do you think a new dog would help?

There are no rules about how to react to death. Do what you want and i
hope it works out for you.

Big Hug.

a new dog wont ever replace your best friend, it it will help you heal the hole in your heart. If we could bring g back the list ones. Most of us would! But we can't. So the best we can do is offer & a loving home to a new buddy.

As another poster (or several) has said it can be difficult ' bringing the grief' smack bang front & centre again. But those rescue or tiny puppy eyes make you fall in love all over again.

'My breed' is cocker spaniels. I love most medium or bigger breeds (some smaller ones) and if I could I'd have a huge range of dogs! But as I can't it'll always be a CS.

for me, they need to be a different colour though, or it's just too hard.

i'll never.ever have another Blue Roan - just seeing one still makes me cry,... my soul girl forever xx

We have had a lot of different dogs, nearly all rescues. I have never considered a new one as a replacement but each has had their own place in our family. However, a staffie cross we lost a couple of years ago left a gaping hole. This year, my older dog chose his new companion from the same dogs’ home we had got her from many years ago. Our newest recruit is another staffie cross girl, with an almost identical description and history. She has stormed into our lives like a whirling dervish and made us all laugh again. She has helped me feel less sad about her predecessor and it does feel meant to be. They were both in the home for a long time, but they are just perfect for us. If they had coexisted, it would have been total mayhem, but it almost seems that our beloved old girl knew we needed a bit of her back.
Grief is individual and so are our preferences. I hope you find the dog who is meant for you.

I moved into my house on a Friday and collected my GR puppy on the Sunday. We had him almost 15 years, and he was the best dog. After they go there is such a terrible dog shaped hole I got another within 10 days. It didn’t replace him but this beautiful kind labradoodle girl was the sweetest thing. We lost her at 12 after a year of illness, which was so hard and a year full of worry and tears. The house was empty again, joyless. I was on the list at Battersea almost immediately and got a call 2 weeks later, they had a GR girl, 14 months that needed a home. She is now 7 and is the naughtiest one I’ve ever had, but is still totally joyful and entertaining and has enabled me to meet new dog friends. They are all so different and I wouldn’t have changed a thing. Do what you need.

As my User Name suggests, I now own my 5th Sheltie. I had a girl, then three boys and now another girl - all have been completely different in personality.

My 5th Sheltie is 13 and has slowed dramatically and I have said I will never have another dog, but then I said that after losing the other four. I cannot imagine having another breed.

I am so sorry for your loss OP, it is so difficult to lose a much loved pet, they steal our hearts.

I am so sorry, that must have been a dreadful shock.💐

When I suddenly found myself on my own I got an elderly rescue dog who was my best friend - she was so loyal and incredible company. She had been in kennels for 6 months and was the dog that everyone passed by.
I had her for about seven years and she was with me through meeting my now husband and the birth of our daughter. She passed exactly two weeks after our daughter was born and I know - without a shadow of a doubt - she was holding on until she knew the baby has arrived safely. I loved her so very much and miss her every day.
I would do anything to have another dog but I am out of the house with work most days from 8.30 - 3.45ish so it is simply not something I can consider right now.
But it's literally the first thing I am going to do when I retire! ❤️

Lost my dog earlier this year and I was actually heartbroken. I have done things that I would have considered mad in other people but there you are. However I do have another dog now, not a replacement, but I have room in my life for a dog. This pup is really hard work but has been a brilliant distraction and is now calming down. I have a different breed altogether, just felt right. You'll know when you're ready.

The longest I’ve lasted without a dog in the last 40yrs has been two weeks 🤷🏼‍♀️. I got a rescue of the same breed, followed a few months later by a puppy. I would be miserable without a dog.

Do all of those with dogs wfh?

I’m actually crying at some of these posts. I’m so sorry for the doggy’s that have passed over rainbow bridge. Dogs are really just the best!

My dog is 8, but thinks he’s 2. He’s my first dog even though i grew up with dogs (on a farm).

he’s my shadow and I spend all my time with him (wfh).

I hope you all find love and joy in your new family members. I don’t know if I could have another dog after him. We’ll see.

I do. I've always been based at home, but my partner was full time in an office pre-covid. He is now wfh also, our current girl was his first experience of full-on puppy rearing. We couldn't have had the dogs if we were both out all day. We have giants, we don't crate and they love company.

I am on dogs 5 and 6 and they've all been the same breed. You never replace, but they fill the dog shaped hole. As others have said, just don't expect another one to be the same.
To answer @everychildmatters, no, not everyone with a dog wfh - I know I don't.

It's a compliment to your pet that has died that you think I loved having my dog and now I'm so sad without it I want another one. You know another dog won't replace the part of your heart that your old dog took. That doesn't mean you can't have another dog, who may be very different in temperament and the opposite sex.