One of the hardest parts of losing your dog is seeing other dogs that resemble him. Yesterday I was startled  by a Kev lookalike who came walking around a corner near the local shops.  I thought I knew most of the dogs in our locality, but not this one. Kev was a crossbreed, sometimes called a mongrel – we never insulted our noble boy with that name! His gorgeous rich black and tan colouring is a strong trait in many crossbreed dogs, and it can be very beautiful.  Today I saw this picture from one of my Twitter followers, called Dondogs. His puppy is carrying a pig’s ear home from the shops.  The resemblance between this puppy and my dear Kev is quite striking. The other pic shows Kev scavenging a burger in the street – he always sniffed discarded food out faster than we could spot it!  Guess I will have to seeing ghosts….

At least we are not alone – I met a friend last week who had to prepare to take her pet to be euthanised the following day. There is no worse feeling that I have known. The build up to the day was unbearable, even though I knew he was suffering. The saying is true – “the pain of loss that is so much greater than the joy of possession”.

But I still hope to get another dog in future: when there are so many animals who need a loving home, how could I not adopt?

Part of the necessary euipment could include dehumidifiers for those little accidents .. there, I am tearful again!

I was very pleased today to read about the Animal Rescue Foundation in Chicago, which was set up by Tony LaRussa, Manager of a Baseball team over there.  The charity operates a “no-kill” policy which is especially valuable for older dogs who are homeless.  Kevin was nine years old when he was found straying in the street.  Many of our dog shelters would have put him down because older dogs are hard to rehome. Fortunately he was taken to the Mayhew Animal Home, which pledges to keep all healthy dogs alive and find them a new home.  If you are thinking of getting a dog please go to one of these shelters and give a dog a lovely home. It beats giving your money to a commercial breeder’s POS system.

This is a story that cheered me up enormously today. A soldier, Gwen Beberg, on assignment in Baghdad, found and adopted a stray puppy who she named Ratchet. At the end of her tour of duty, Gwen arranged for Ratchet to fly back to the States with her luggage. At the last minute Sgt Beberg faced a new battle with bureaucrats who tried to prevent Ratchet’s return. But with the support of a charity, Operation Baghdad Pups, the six-month old dog was flown back to Minnesota where Gwen’s parents cared for him. This week Gwen herself flew home, and was greeted by her lovely dog – who has grown much bigger while they were apart! An enthusiastic welcome nearly knocked the soldier off her feet – aaah!

http://blogs.dogtime.com/the-news-hound-blog/2009/01/ratchet-and-soldier-finally-reunited