I'm so sorry to hear of the loss of your Bruiser. It must be horrible for you. I think that getting one of his litter mates is a great idea,even if they are 6 months old.It would be like having a part of Bruiser again.
We got our Beatrice when she was almost 9 months old ,I would do it again in a heart beat....I mean get an older pup.She learned everything so quickly.
It's sounds like you have a space in your life that needs to be refilled
