I heard the all-too familiar comment again this morning, which I've heard with few exceptions from everyone who has asked about Daisy, most of them dog owners themselves. "Are you getting another dog?" This is said as if we already should be about the business of the equivalent to replacing a worn out sofa and not be mourning the loss of a living, breathing being that filled our lives with unconditional love and incredible joy and laughter (and yes, some annoyance) for a decade. Would you ever conceive of asking a bereaved parent if she was going to rush right out to the nearest orphanage to adopt another child to replace the one she's just lost? Such a question is no less absurd to one who loves a dog in the way I love my dogs.

When my first dog died, my parents took us kids right out to choose another dog, a poodle, which was a far cry from the rough and tumble mongrel Dusty had been. That was a terrible mistake as well as an injustice to us and to Kissy, the poor dog that never did receive the full measure of love from us that she was entitled to because we tried to fill the Dusty-sized hole in our hearts much too soon. Before moving on to the next chapter in your life, it's good to take some time to grieve your loss, no matter what the loss may be--a job; a divorce; the death of a parent, spouse or child, or even a dog! Loss is loss. Grief is grief. The heart doesn't know the difference.

That's how I want to respond to people who make that statement to me, but I understand that they mean well when they make the comment and instead just answer politely, "No, not yet."