It is with the heaviest heart that I write my first post to this forum in this section.  

On November 4, 2017 my dear girl Dani passed on.  She was the most beautiful dog inside and out.  She was always happy, affectionate, smart, playful, respectful, loyal, protective, and adventurous.



I rescued Dani on April 18, 2014; but she rescued me every day thereafter until her passing.

This is the eulogy I read at her attended cremation service on  November 10, 2017.  (Our tearful last goodbye.)
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In Memoriam

Our dear Husky, Dani, was a beautiful girl inside and out.  She was majestic, incredible and amazing beyond words.  She died too soon, as the most beautiful things in life are fleeting.  Dani was a member of our pack, our family, and she will be forever remembered in our hearts and minds.

Dani was an incredible dog, the best ever.  She was the cement that bonded our family and brought us closer than we ever thought possible.  Dani brought out the best in each of us and allowed us to see what an incredible family we are.  Every single day Dani reminded us that family is the most important thing in life and that the pack always;

• Spends the most time possible together
• Displays love and affection for each other
• Protects each other
• Goes on adventures and experiences life together
• Is honest and loyal to each other
• Brings happiness to each other by smiling, laughing, and playing together

Dani taught us to live in the present and to not let the past haunt our future.  She helped our family overcome the most difficult times by always being there in our time of need.  She never failed us once. In fact, Dani enriched our lives beyond what we ever thought was possible.

We are so sad because we know the magnitude of this loss.  Our hearts will forever ache.  Our lives will never be the same but they will be better for having known you, Dani.
Every single day we told you a hundred times that you were a good girl and we meant it from the bottom of our hearts.  You were our “Good Girl” our “Lupa”, our “Koukla”, our “Princess”, our “Wolfie Girl”, our Dani.

Thank you Dani.  
Thank you Dani.  
Thank You Dani.

You gave us more than we could ever give you.

Goodbye Dani.  Rest in peace sweetheart.  Catch all the furry creatures in heaven.  We will see you again.

Love,
Daddy, Mommy, and Joe.
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This is a video and picture of Dani and me at Husky House.  I was a volunteer when we met 3 1/2 years ago.





I am devastated beyond words.  I have cried every day since she fell ill.  I don't know what to do.  The magnitude of this loss has been greater than any other in my life.  Only people who love dogs can understand.

Respectfully,
Jerry

I am so sorry for your loss. Your love for Dani is clear from your eulogy and my heart breaks for you I have no words to take away your grief. I wish I did. I will hug my boy a little longer tonight, thinking of you and Dani. If love to see more pics if you have them...she truly was a beautiful dog.

Such a beautiful eulogy. And such a beautiful little girl. I've been where you are several times, not only losing such a precious member of the family, but also losing one far sooner than you'd expect...and I still can't express the words I'd like to. All I can say is I am so sorry for your loss and just know she is still with you, and will always be with you, until that one day you meet again.

Run free Dani

I am so sorry for your loss. My heart breaks for you. I will hug my babies a little tighter tonight.

She was beautiful. I am sorry for your loss. Losing them is always hard. Losing them to random illness or accidents can be especially hard making some wonder what more could I have done. The only thing we really can do is love them the best we can while we have the chance. No day is ever a guarantee.

Thank you everyone for the kind words.  It means a lot to me as I know it comes from people that understand what these special dogs mean to their families.

Dani and I were bonded at the core of our being.  She came with me everywhere except work.  When she wasn't with me, she was with either my son or wife.  In the 3 1/2 years that she graced our lives we only kenneled her a couple of times.  Dani hated being away from her pack; but not as much as we dreaded being away from her.

Ami, you asked for some more pics.  Here are some pics of my sweetest girl.




































I also posted some videos on Youtube of Dani doing some cute very Husky like things; playing in the snow, talking, digging, playing with other dogs.  The forum won't allow me to post the outside link but if you view the above video on YouTube you can go to my channel and see the others.

That last picture is one of the sweetest husky love pictures I've ever seen! Such joy and such devotion.

You can show a you tube video by clicking on the you tube icon in the tool bar, it will bring up a place to add the url. I just brought up my video on you tube, copy what is in the browser address bar then pasted that into space for url from the icon and hit insert. If that makes sense.

What beautiful pictures - I can see that she has left a huge hole.



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amymeme wrote:

That last picture is one of the sweetest husky love pictures I've ever seen!  Such joy and such devotion.

Thank you so much. That was one day when my son was home sick with a cold.

Dani always did an amazing job as a nurse.

so sorry for your loss, i fee your pain.she was an amazing member of your family and love so profoundly..
Run free Dani.

Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to check back in and say while it has been 5 months since I lost my baby girl, I still think about her many times throughout the day.  Honestly, there hasn't been a day that has passed without my eyes welling up or an outright crying spell when re-living a memory about Dani.  

I don't think it's normal or that I have adjusted well.  My own health has suffered.  But that is on me.  This coming April 18th would have been 4 years since I brought my sweetheart home.  People see my pain and have told me to get another Husky - and to be honest I have thought about adopting another rescue, but I become overwhelmed with a sense of guilt that I am trying to replace that which is irreplaceable.  I know I would be saving another life; but I just can't balance that equation in my mind.  I hope it's just a matter of needing more time.  These animals are amazing beyond words.  Their love of family and adventure is unlike any other.

Here are some pictures of the first night I took Dani home 4 years ago.  Apologies, the photos aren't that good but they are priceless to me nonetheless.


My two babies.  Both happy and beautiful inside and out.

Loosing a dog is always hard and everyone deals with it in their own way. Some people will go out and immediately get another dog and some people need time to let the pain fade, I have the same opinion as you in that I don't want to feel like I'm just replacing the dog. I go overboard and through myself into work and taking on too many projects.

Have you thought about volunteering to go walk dogs at a shelter in your area? It would be an awesome thing to do in honor of our rescue girl and you might eventually meet a dog you fall in love with, to help fill that hole in your life. Plus it would just get you around dogs again and sometimes that helps too.

I'm sorry to hear about your girl, she seemed like a sweet one and clearly meant a lot to your family, huskies definitely have a way of feeling like another person in the home and not just a pet

The suggestion to walk shelter dogs I think is a great one. You get to help others while not diving straight in. If the right dog comes along you will be in a position to know. Beginning guilt is normal. Heck I had initial guilt everytime I brought a new dog home and I still have my girl, but it feels a little like I'm dividing my attention or she thinks she won't get the same attention as before but the guilt lessens with time. For me,seeing her enjoy playing with my other dogs helped. I wouldn't rule out getting another. You have such deep love for her and getting another won't change that but that's a lot of love to have with nothing to express it onto now.

That guilt thing? Happened every time I had another baby. Ditto with additional dogs...

Really beautiful pictures.

While I can't say what is normal and what is not, I still think about my last two Huskies daily, and tear up still most of those times. Last week (April 9) and coming up in a bit more than a week (April 27) it will be 5 years since they both passed. So while I can't say it's normal, I don't think the fact you are still thinking and crying about Dani after only 5 months, is abnormal. I think it's more common than you may think. And my own opinion, pretty normal...5 months is not that long ago.

Like you, my mindset has always been that you can't replace the irreplaceable. After Malukhai and Anuschka passed away, the house became no longer a home. It was dead quiet. For dogs that make virtually no noise, there sure is a incredible silence when they're not there anymore. I didn't want to come home anymore. After work, I'd go to my car, sit down in the seat, and it'd all just come crashing down on me again and I'd just cry. Going home was the worst. Then...it'd be their normal walk time, man did they (and I) love those walks. I'd put on my hoodie, put their collars in my pocket, and I'd take those walks still. Normal? Nah, I don't think so, but we all do what we have to do to get through our sadness. A month after Anuschka passed away, I was picking up my new Husky Kohdi. Too soon? As much as I think it was, I also just as many times, think it wasn't soon enough. Between the day Anuschka died, and the day I left to pick up Kohdi, I was beyond sad. I wasn't eating hardly anything, I was barely sleeping and when I did finally sleep, it was tough to wake back up. Like you, I felt my health was suffering. My friend took pics of me holding Kohdi the day I picked him up, I look at them now and I can see just how much their deaths were affecting me. I looked like a skeleton. Anyways, it wasn't til I had Kohdi in my arms and sat down in my seat for the ride back home, that I truly felt that the "guilt" hit me. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I sat down and I'm holding this new puppy, and just uncontrollably start crying. I had brought Malukhai and Anuschka with me, a pic of each, and they laid on the console, and through my tears I saw them looking at me. Kohdi laid down on my chest and for the first time in a couple of days, I fell asleep, and my friend told me that's what Kohdi did too, he slept on my chest, waking up once and chewed a bit on my hat, before repositioning himself and falling back asleep. When we got home, yes, the guilt was still there, this new puppy was in Malukhai and Anuschka's home. Even though I knew I wasn't getting Kohdi to "replace" them, the feeling of guilt was still there. Next month it will be 5 years since that day. I can say with all honesty, Kohdi never replaced Malukhai and Anuschka, he instead is another being to give my love too, to take care of, and to bring that joy to my life that a Husky has its own special way of doing. I know it's cliche, but Malukhai and Anuschka I do feel still live on in my heart, they are two that I can never ever forget, and the things I learned from them, in their time with me, are things that Kohdi (and Mishka) benefit from so they also live on in Kohdi and Mishka.

I say all this, not because I think you should get another dog, only you should make that determination. I only wish to show you through my own experience/s, that your not alone in your feelings, your thoughts, we all have been there, or will be there someday, and we all do the best we can to get though it.

I completely agree with Jimmy.
Well said!
When my second husky, Tasha, died I was bereft.
At night, I would go on evening walks without her just because that's what we always did.
And I'd talk to her while I walked.

My current husky, Bodhi, never replaced Tasha.
When I rescued him, I just felt like my heart expanded to include him.
Tasha is still part of me and always will be.

Jerry, I'm an old fart - 71 to be exact - and in all those years I've almost always had a dog living with me. Misty, Kalah, Blondie, and a few others - they're all setting (I doubt that!) together at the Bridge waiting for me.

My dogs are my friends, my companions. They can't be replaced, they're each unique. Misty would crawl up into the recliner and 'read' with me. Kalah and Lady (black labs) were my constant fawning companions ... remember the time I went camping and Lady helped me bring wood in for the fire

There's no need to feel guilty about bringing another pup into your life ... I think all the dogs I've ever had would expect that. I still see Misty and Kalah and Lady ... oh, not that they're really there, but something I see reminds them of so much that their memory is 'right there.'

When you're ready, there's another dog who'll be more than glad to fill a part of your heart - - and it doesn't matter how many dogs you've had, there's always a little more room in our hearts for just one more.

Thank you everyone for your thoughts, suggestions, and personal stories.  

Tonight I will raise a shot of Vodka to my Siberian girl and be thankful for having earned and known her love.  

 To my dearest baby girl, Dani, I will love you till the end and beyond.

so sorry for your loss

Jerry,

I so very sorry for your loss. How have you been?