Willow has just not been acting like herself and I can't tell if she is depressed from losing Dakota or if this is just how she is when there isn't another dog around to get into mischief with. I know I shouldn't complain but she has turned into such a mellow dog that I think it's borderline lazy. She still gets excited for her walks, but she used to have a couple rounds with Dakota, take a walk and then play fetch with me everynight. She is still playing fetch but not like she used to. She seems to only want to do it a couple of times and then she just lays down. She isn't eating hardly at all! I don't think she is sick...she will eat a couple bits a day and then that's it, so I threw an egg on her food on Friday to see what she would do and she did eat all of it. Plus she never turns down a treat so I don't think it's cause she is sick. I stopped giving her treats to get her to eat her kibble....the same bowl of food is still sitting there since Saturday. She has been nibbling on it all weekend. Dakota was getting to where he needed to go out to pee every two hours and she always went the same time he did. Now, I have to drag her outside after 4 hours to make her pee. Last night I couldn't even get her to go. The last time she peed was around 5:30 from our walk and at 10pm I let her out to pee and she wouldn't go. I figured she was going to wake me up in the middle of the night needing to go but she didn't. She didn't pee from 5:30pm last night till 5:30am this morning! She never used to pee on our walks and now she is marking every few spots like Dakota! I just feel like she is a completely different dog! Am I over analyizing???

I have no experience with how dogs mourn, but to me it does sound like she's depressed. Not eating like she used to, not wanting to pee, not playing fetch as often, etc. Is she still crazy about Slimey? Is she drinking water as usual? Does she act normal on her walks (other than the marking every few spots like Dakota...that's very weird that she's doing that now btw). Awwww, it makes me sad to think she's depressed

Poor girl. I'm no expert either, but it sounds like she's upset. I would assume on eof mine was if they suddenly started acting like that.

I don't like thinking she is depressed either. She loves her walks and I don't think she is drinking that much. I didn't realize how much Dakota was until now. I was refilling the water bowl constantly and now I only refill to get rid of stale water. I was going to wait until after Christmas to look into another dog, but I think I am going to start looking now.

I would be concerned about her not eating. I would guess either she is a little depressed or she has no "competition" for food so it's just no big deal to eat. I think all dogs act differently when they are alone vs. when they are with other dogs, so it's hard to know. All of her habits have been formed with Dakota around, so she's probably having to figure out who she really is since so much of her life was intertwined with his.

Perhaps a quick chat with your vet over the phone...

When Mylo passed away last year I could see the immediate difference in Adobo. She missed him a lot and basically became a totally different dog. She was my original PITA dog (pain in the ass) but it was a lot of fun. After Mylo passed she calmed waaaaaay down, took to sleeping in the guest bedroom we have. Still had the get up and go for walks also but when in the house she would quiet right down. I missed not having a 2nd dog and used Mylo's absence as an excuse to get another for her companionship. Learned the hard way what I want isn't always the best. We recovered from that not so nice episode and then wanted a few more weeks before we came across Biko and they've been a good pair. Do dogs mourn, I'd bet my paycheck that they sure as hell do

Len, I was hoping you would give me your insight! It makes me feel better to know that it's just something she is going through. She kinda changed her sleeping too....she still sleeps in my room but she was sleeping on my bed at night...she won't now. She sleeps on his bed. She used to try to steal his bed before and I wouldn't let her so then she would get on my bed. So, that could just mean that she just loves his bed. By episode you are referring to, did you get a dog on emotion and it didn't work out?? I've told myself that the next dog must be a good fit for her and me so I hope I will keep my head straight looking at another dog.

Are there any dog parks in your area or maybe a neighbor dog she can play with? Maybe that would help.

Awww Len, poor Adobo It really always hurts me more for the dog that lost their buddy and the owner having to watch their dog being so depressed while mourning themselves Did Adobo start acting more "normal" after you got Biko? In your opinion do you think Mindy should get another right now or wait a bit? If I were Mindy, I would probably already be searching just because I wouldn't want Willow not having a buddy, but that's just me and like I said I've never had to deal with this.

Opps I was typing my previous post while you posted Mindy...

26nikita wrote:

By episode you are referring to, did you get a dog on emotion and it didn't work out??


I've told myself that the next dog must be a good fit for her and me so I hope I will keep my head straight looking at another dog.

Yes I, had all intentions of another Malamute,(Tinola) this one was 3 yrs old and female, but looked like Mylo with longer hair. Totally terrorized Adobo, and 3 days later would have killed her if Beth hadn't heard the commotion going on outside. I had to reach into the middle of a dog fight to release Adobo from her runner cable. I was slightly nicked but Adobo had some serious chew marks on her. I had to return her to the rescuefor Adobo's sake.

Tinola:

I remember when I was a kid my grandmother had two little dogs. When one of them passed away, her other one was very upset. Dogs may think differently than we do, but I am certain that they have emotions. I hope Willow perks up soon. Maybe she just needs time, like humans do.

MelissaI wrote:

Did Adobo start acting more "normal" after you got Biko? In your opinion do you think Mindy should get another right now or wait a bit

I would say she bounced back a bit more of her old self but now still sleeps 95% of her night in another room. She became a bit of a loner but is the big kisser she always was and part time diva.

Get another now or later? Tough call you have to do what both the head and the heart say, I listened with only my heart and almost lost it all and hit the deep end for quite some time.

Melissa, I wasn't going to say anything, but I did already find a girl that would be a perfect fit from what the rescue wrote about her, but I just found out there are other people that are interested before me so I probably won't be getting her. At first, I had decided to wait a couple months before I started looking again...but that changed since Willow seems so lonely.

Aww Len, I'm sorry you had to go through that after losing Mylo! I'm a bit nervous about rescuing incase something like that happens. I want to find another that Willow can really bond with. One of the reasons, I wanted the female sibe I mention above is becuase she sounds super friendly.

Sara, Dog parks are about 40 minutes away from me so it's not convenient. My neighbor has two dogs but they are not friendly. My cousin has a dog, but again, not friendly. I really don't have anyone to meet up with for her.

Dog daycare? We take Appa once a week purely for the socialization.

I can't imagine a dog not mourning the loss of a buddy.

I should take her to Doggy Daycare atleast once a week.... I've lost her rabies tags so I will have to wait until her appt to get new ones, but that's a good idea.

Don't know if this will help, and, of course, it may not be applicable to your area, but all the doggie daycares around here contact the dog's vet directly to get its medical and vaccination records, so you might not need your tags. I didn't need to bring anything to take Winter. They take off the dogs' collars as soon as they get there as a safety precaution anyway. I'm sorry you're dealing with Willow's sadness on top of your own. I hope she perks up soon. Poor sweetie.

Poor Willow! I agree, she definitely is mourning the loss of Dakota. When the dog I had when I lived with my parents passed away, our other dog took the loss very hard. She wouldn't eat, paced around, and would wander around the house looking for her friend. It was heartbreaking. Getting another dog may help, but make sure you are ready. Like people, she just needs time. A new dog might confuse her right now, or it may help by keeping her busy. There is no way to know. Give her a hug from me!

Len, that husky decal in the back of your car is awesome!

I´m pretty sure she feels lonely without her buddy, if she was sick she wouldn´t enjoy the walks, so it sound slike mourning or depression

I've never had 2 dogs at once, but I have had several cats and when one was sick or dying they would lay with them and knew exactly when they passed. They would wander around very depressed as you mentioned but as time went on they came back to their old selves. I know cats are different than dogs but mine would always run around and sleep together, they were very just blah, I guess I would say.
The good news is they came back from that, they also are feeding off our emotions.
I know when I get in a sad mood all the animals sense it ans act accordingly.

Getting another dog is a desicion that only you can make, It may help both of you heal.
Good luck.

Oh Mindy, this breaks my heart to read, im sure Willow is mourning the loss of her buddy. but only time will heal the heart. adding a second husky may or may not be the best thing but since you seem to be lacking the interaction of close dogs for her to play with it might be a good idea and only Willow will tell you if its right or not. let HER pick her new friend, look into rescues where you can introduce willow and a few dogs and see who she gels with, thats what we did with Sierra and she picked Jack, we just got lucky that he was the only red there and that she got along the best with him even if he was much younger then her. they have never had a real fight about anything and i think thats because Sierra knew she got to pick and i also think jack knows that as well. hang in there, it will get better

I can only find two rescues that will work with my distance. I think one of them (Free Spirit Siberian Rescue) does have the dogs in one location so she should be able to interract with several to see who she picks but the other rescue, (Northern Lights) the dogs are scattered at foster homes. I have inquired about a girl at Northern Lights, but I'm not first in line so chances are slim. I should know in a week. Here is her profile... http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/21357261
If Northern Lights have one that meets my criteria (cat and dog friendly) then I will definatly have her meet them first and see how she does. Can you really tell if they will get on, in one short meet? I am nervous about not getting the right match for her.

Oh Mindy she sounds so sweet! Sucks that there are people wanting to adopt her before you! As long as she finds her perfect forever home then I guess that's all that counts. You'll find the right match for Willow. Just wait and see and it will be soon

She really does! She almost sounds too good to be true. .

Good luck on your search. I really think you will be able to tell very quickly whether they will get along. You know Willow better than anyone and will be able to pick up any bad vibes.