Newbie here; just reading and remembering

[seastheday]

Hello Everyone. I am new to this forum. Actually, when I got my Yorkie Barkley 13 years ago, I read posts and gained a ton of information. I never registered. Last week I lost my beloved Barkley to an aggressive form of stomach cancer, then I registered. While, I am sure most of you will say that I had 13 wonderful years with him, I still wanted more. His diagnosis and subsequent death were 9 weeks apart. So, basically I have been crying since September. There is a huge void in our lives. My husband is retired and wants another Yorkie NOW - I need some time. Saying that, I cannot stop reading your posts and reading up on the breeders in our area. I am also signed up with all the Yorkie rescue sites in the state. I feel that it is way too soon to replace a dog that was such a big part of our lives. Your posts and information have opened my eyes to so many different things that I did not know about Yorkies. I know that I bought him after having two rescues and I wanted a smaller dog. I knew nothing about Yorkies. What I got was this wonderful little dog, who was easily trained, funny, smart and had the most intelligent and expressive eyes I have ever seen. We learned from each other. I don't know when the time will be "right" for me to bring another baby into my house. All I know is that Barkley is everywhere I look. How long did it take for all of you to get over the loss of a pet?
Ronnie

[AngelFae]

Welcome to YorkieTalk! I am SOOOO very sorry for your loss!
I've never lost a pet- the two dogs I have now (an almost 8 year old German Shorthair Pointer and a 6 month old Yorkie) are my first pets ever. I am so scared for the day that I have to say goodbye to one of them. I know some people can't handle the loneliness left by their pet's passing and rush out and get a new one almost immeadiately. Others can't bring themselves to ever fill the void. Do what feels best for you when you are ready. (((HUGS))) to you!

[jeane]

I am so sorry for your loss. I lost my lab 3 years ago and i still miss her. I think that you always do.

[Marhcarter]

Welcome. My heart goes out to you in your time of loss. We lost our humane society lab mutt after 13 years, and I still cried talking about him for 2 years after that. It took us 5 years to get another dog although I wanted one right away, my husband couldn't stand thinking about the loss and how he didn't want to go through that again. We ended up with our silky yorkie mix so we wouldn't constantly be comparing him to our last dog. I think getting over the loss is so individualized, but we wouldn't give anything for Huey. He has brought so much love and joy to our lives that I can't imagine how I was without a dog for 5 years. Good luck in your search for the perfect new companion.

[horsnaround]

So sorry we too lost our first yorkie when he was 13. And we swore no more. But we saw him every where. I decided after two months I was just to sad Dh said no but I was miserable. I felt like if I got another yorkie it would be to hard. So the day after Christmas I got my cairn. I love her to pieces but she is not a yorkie. So then two years later I got another yorkie and sadly we lost her at three years of age. But my home now has two yorkies one is a daughter of my Lexi ( who I lost at 3) and her dad. Personally I will never go that long without one again. I miss Boji and Lexi terrible but these others sure help the pain. I always laugh and say Boji look what you started. From one to three you have to do what's best for you. But I agree with your dh. There is a pup or a rescue that needs you
And sounds like it will be one very lucky dog.

And welcome to yt

[bobohyde]

I am so sorry for your loss. The doggie love of my life was my beloved golden retriever who died at 10 from cancer. It tore my heart out and the grief was a bad as if he were a human member of the family. We were devastated at his passing. I wanted another dog right away. But my husband and two sons, who were teens at the time, said "how could you do that to Indy?" So I waited. We also had an elderly cat who became ill and passed 9 months later and I decided to devote my time to her. So after one year, I got Columbo. The part I wasn't expecting is that although the little fart loves me, he ADORES my husband. It's his lap he's on all the time when he's here, but I have to hold him to get him to stay on mine. Indy was all about pleasing me, but Columbo is all about pleasing himself. The connection between Columbo and I is different than Indy and I. I used to think that when I lose Columbo, it won't hurt as bad because of this. But Columbo is 9 now and gets more loving as he gets older. I look at him sometimes and wonder when he'll be taken from us and I know it will be very difficult. Our sons are out of the house now, so Columbo is our spoiled baby. I don't think there is one answer on how long to wait. You'll know when the time is right for you.

[MandiesMom]

I am so sorry for the loss of your Barkley. I lost my heart dog right at 5 years ago and I still miss her to pieces. I was in bad shape for like a half a year and finally decided I needed another dog to love on and to love me. I wish I hadn't waited so long because he really helped heal my heart. I will always love, miss, and think about her but I'm not catatonic anymore. I realized that having another dog is not replacing your lost one...it's just giving yourself more love. We are all (humans and animals) capabable of sharing so much love (it's an endless supply).

Now, my 2 dogs are in my heart, too. I love them so much and my world pretty much revolves around them. You'll know when the time is right for you.

[coolcowsmoo]

I am so sorry for your loss. We lost our beloved 18 year old kitty, Carson, 15 years ago. We could never bring ourselves to "replace" him. Then last year we were "embraced" by the situation of a rescue puppy needing a home badly, so we caved. It has been one of our biggest blessings in a small package Not only does he bring us such joy, we have brought a loving home and safe, warm place into his world. I now realize our Beloved Carson would have said... "What took you so long? That's your job here on earth, to care for us, and you neglected it for way too long!!"
So I hope you can feel your pain, grieve the loss of your Beloved Friend, but open your heart to keep on giving love to another love-starved rescue. I'm sure it's what your Barkley would have wanted.

[yorkietalkjilly]

Originally Posted by seastheday

Hello Everyone. I am new to this forum. Actually, when I got my Yorkie Barkley 13 years ago, I read posts and gained a ton of information. I never registered. Last week I lost my beloved Barkley to an aggressive form of stomach cancer, then I registered. While, I am sure most of you will say that I had 13 wonderful years with him, I still wanted more. His diagnosis and subsequent death were 9 weeks apart. So, basically I have been crying since September. There is a huge void in our lives. My husband is retired and wants another Yorkie NOW - I need some time. Saying that, I cannot stop reading your posts and reading up on the breeders in our area. I am also signed up with all the Yorkie rescue sites in the state. I feel that it is way too soon to replace a dog that was such a big part of our lives. Your posts and information have opened my eyes to so many different things that I did not know about Yorkies. I know that I bought him after having two rescues and I wanted a smaller dog. I knew nothing about Yorkies. What I got was this wonderful little dog, who was easily trained, funny, smart and had the most intelligent and expressive eyes I have ever seen. We learned from each other. I don't know when the time will be "right" for me to bring another baby into my house. All I know is that Barkley is everywhere I look. How long did it take for all of you to get over the loss of a pet?
Ronnie

I'm so sorry you have lost your sweet Barkley and probably know exactly how you are hurting. We've all been where you are before more than once and the pain of losing your friend never leaves, you just learn to live with it, so it gets better. Eventually your body takes over and replaces raw pain with sweet memories and smiles when you see their toys, leash or picture, see a favorite chair. So in time you do stop hurting so much and see a way forward. After a while, you begin to long and miss having a dog best friend so much you are driven out past your pain and loss to try to find more of that kind of love.

Just don't wait too long. I waited 5 years after I lost my Scotty and 4 after I lost Jilly and it took me a year to find Tibbe after I started looking. I almost got to the point I didn't look after living w/out a dog so long after losing Jilly and I didn't want the disappointment of coming home empty-handed. But eventually, I missed having a Yorkie so much I HAD to get one. I'm just not meant to live without a Yorkie and neither are you. The first time I sat Tibbe down in my home, life was right again. He was like having Scotty and Jilly again but all wrapped into a totally different dog. He's as different from them as night is from day and yet has so many of their Yorkie ways it's like they are back in so many ways.

Remember, more than anyone, your little Barkley would want you to give another dog a loving home - would want you to know that kind of love and special relationship again. You know you would have his blessing to begin looking as soon as you feel up to it. You know that! Dogs are such social animals and so full of love, no doubt they would grieve to think of their special person so alone and hurting. More than anything, getting Jilly and then getting Tibbe helped me heal of my grieving the most.

[gracielove]

I'm sorry about poor Barkley. I lost my Shih Tzu at age 15. It is never easy. I was never going to have another dog. He was such a great dog, so well trained. I cried whenever I thought of him for several months but after a while I started to get better and then I started to think of having another dog. When I did start looking I wanted a rescue but finding a small dog in a shelter was difficult if not impossible and there were no Yorkie rescues near by. I really didn't want a puppy but my search was getting frustrating and causing me to feel almost desperate.

Maybe just start to look into finding a good breeder or rescue near you. Hopefully, you will have better success than I did. At least you will know where to go when you are ready.

I found Gracie accidently in my vet's office. She and her sister were in for their first vet check. One look and that was it. I'm so glad my cat had an appointment that day!

[seastheday]

Thank you all for such kind words. Some made me cry but most said the same thing as my kids and my husband. I need a dog to love again. My son, who was the only one of my children left in the house when we got Barkley and who loved him as much as I did, keeps sending me rescues of Mini Pinchers, terrier mixes, anything but Yorkies. He knows me well enough to know that any dog I get will be compared to "The Barkman". Probably true, but I have fallen in love with the breed and unless some other poor soul falls into my lap, I will get another Yorkie. We all have Yorkie stories to tell, but I found that this dog had the uncanny ability to know when we needed him most. He laid his head in my husband's lap every day, twice a day for 30 minutes while I ran an IV on him after a very serious illness. He did this for 6 months. The joke was, after I disconnected the IV line, he bolted. He was a terrier first, and a lap dog second .
Yesterday I received a sympathy note from my vet with a paw print of Barkley. What a wonderful gift.
Thank you all for your support and kind words.
Ronnie

[lisaly]

I am very sorry for your loss. I know how much it hurts and how much you miss Barkley. It is because we love our forever loves so dearly that we want to open up our hearts again to another baby. It's the best way that we can honor our loved ones at the Rainbow Bridge. When you love someone so deeply, I don't think you ever get over the loss, but in time the pain lessens, and those sweet memories of times and the beautiful love shared bring such joy to the heart. I lost my sweet Ashley 2.5 years ago one month shy of her seventeenth birthday and her precious sisters Gracie and Kiwi a few years before her. We talk about them so often, and our hearts are so uplifted and filled from joy just thinking about them. Our lives were so empty for almost two years until Katie entered our home and our hearts this past May. She is not a replacement for our other little girls, but we love her more than I could ever express. She has made us come alive again, and we are so much happier because of Katie. She is loved for who she is, such a precious, loving, happy little girl with the most wonderful temperament, but Katie also reminds us of her sisters' antics and love. I hope that you one day will feel peace and that you will be able to share your heart again with another little one. I never thought I could love another dog like I loved my first Yorkie, but then Ashley came into our lives (and then Kiwi, Gracie, and now Katie), and each time our hearts expanded and completely fell head and heels in love with our new little forever love). Welcome to YorkieTalk, Ronnie. I hope you stay here and that one day in the future that we can share the joy of another little one in your life with you.

[djnuckles]

Sorry for your loss I'm a new dog lover as well as being to the forum but now that I have my baby DJ I couldn't amagine losing him but I tell you it sure take getting use to someone (DJ) ALWAYS at my feet lol but I'm getting there

[KazzyK810]

Originally Posted by seastheday

I don't know when the time will be "right" for me to bring another baby into my house. All I know is that Barkley is everywhere I look. How long did it take for all of you to get over the loss of a pet?
Ronnie

I'm still not over it. I try to avoid the threads by those who have recently lost pets cos it still starts me bawling over missing Chelsea, and it's been well over 5 years..

After Chelsea, I went three years without a yorkie. I don't know what I was thinking. I was just so sure that I could never care about another dog the way I did her. In those three years, my daughter graduated high school & went away to university, then my son did the same, and I was home alone.

During the 1st semester of my son's freshman year at uni, my kids talked to each other about getting me another dog. They decided to get me a yorkie for Christmas & went visiting breeders. Once they found a breeder they liked & explained what they wanted to do, she wouldn't go for it. The breeder didn't believe in giving animals as gifts. She requested that they talk to me about whether I wanted another dog. So they did over Christmas break & I thought about it for a few weeks. By then I was used to the complete freedom of coming & going as I wanted, and not having to be home for anyone....and I kind of enjoyed it.

Well, I took too long to think about it, and by the time I decided yes, I'd like another yorkie, all the puppies had deposits on them & were spoken for. My daughter (whose university was the closest to the breeder & so she'd visited a few times by then) was devasted. She was sitting in class when she received a voicemail. She called the breeder as she was literally walking out of class, hoping somone had backed out on a pup....no one had, but the breeder who had had her house for sale for over a year, suddenly received an offer and was faced with a quick move, so decided that she'd offer the female puppy she was keeping back for herself. That's how I got my ZoE Seems like it was meant to be.

Hopefully, when the time is right, you'll know it and you'll find another pup that just perfect for you. It won't replace Barkley, but caring well for another pup will honor Barkley.