It has been 46 years since i have NOT had a pet in the house..
Starting with the cat Brandy when Brian was about 5, then, Sami (schnauzer, lived to 14, who i thought i would never have a dog as good as she was) Miki, another cat, then Luci for 16.7 yrs.. they all overlapped to some degree.. i am just not sure how i feel about this. it is freeing in a way, i can go to pet free places, not as hard to find accomodations. the house is cleaner, i don't have as much to do, alot of free time, but there seems to be no joy or lack of abiding love.......
I miss our furry ones so much. But I also know how much easier life is without them. I don't worry about them if I should ever have to go to the hospital. I don't spend days worrying about them when they are sick or old. I can go when and where I want to. And they won't out live me and have to go to a shelter. However I have to tell myself every day that is how my life is at this point. My head knows I've made the right choice but my heart doesn't like it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Jim and Sandie say but I went the opposite way. I didn't plan to but did. In 2019 after Sadie passed, Heidi and Stella were going to be my last two. Once they were gone I was done with dogs after 35+ years. Many of the things I thought about is said above. But my heart was bigger than my head. Logic out the window.
ReplyDeleteSo on a raining Saturday in AZ (rare I know) Feb 2020, I found an English Bulldog and bought 8 week old Walter. I forgot that was I was a waiting list for over a year for a basset hound puppy. Sure enough I am reminded about that a month later. So six months after buying Walter I bought Henry at 8 weeks old and brought him home August 2020. Stella passes last summer 2021 and I am devastated and for reasons I cannot come up with, I bought a 8 week old bloodhound puppy Watson within weeks of her passing.
So here I am older than I want to be. Hoping I die after they do, although I have arrangements for all three of them if that were to happen. Still, they would be split up. So I understand what you are feeling. I felt almost guilty feeling how much easier it was with one less dog. Heck, I use to miss all three of the older ones when they were all at the vet for most of the day and the house was too quiet.
It's a hard thing to sort through and I don't have an answer for you. Sorry.
Can you foster dogs for a local shelter? That sounds good to me.
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