If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.
–Will Rogers
I will not forget you. I have carved you on the palm of my hand.
Isaiah 49:15
Three years ago this month I lost my beloved girl, pictured here. I’d like to tell you everything that was so special about her, but that would fill, as they say, a book. Let’s just say that some angels have fur, not wings. She was a rescue, which supposedly means we rescued her. It didn’t take long for me to realize we had that backwards. She was my husband’s baby, and then my most solid support through very dark days. If not for that dog, I can honestly say I wouldn’t be where I am. I might not even be.
You think those dogs will not be in heaven! I tell you they will be there long before any of us.
–Robert Louis Stevenson
While to me, she was the best dog in the world–and I mean that literally, except for a couple of times when she first came to us and was unsure, that dog Never Did Anything Wrong–I know every dog is special in their own way. And judging from the response to my series of books featuring that furry rascal Cutter, people everywhere love being owned by those furry critters who have the gift of utter forgiveness and give the gift of unconditional love.
Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in.
–Mark Twain
Nothing can fill the hole left by the loss of a beloved dog. And their lives are far, far too short, leaving our lives without them far, far too empty. No one knows that better than I. The only thing we can do is to never forget them, or the joy and love they brought us. With that in mind, it occurred to me that there might be a way for me to help. Which is why I decided to dedicate all of the Cutter books, however many there may be (and no, I have no idea yet) to those dogs who are missed so much.
Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.
–Roger Caras
This month, (until January 31) you can enter to win the chance to memorialize your most beloved canine. Enter through the contest tab at my website: http://justinedavis.com/contest.html You’ll have to be patient, publishing is not a fast business and you’ll have to wait a while to see your tribute. And don’t worry if you’re not a writer, I’ll work with you personally via email to get it just right, because I understand.
Near this spot are deposited the remains of one who possessed Beauty without Vanity, Strength without Insolence, Courage without Ferocity, and all the Virtues of Man, without his Vices. This Praise, which would be unmeaning Flattery if inscribed over human ashes, is but a just tribute to the Memory of Boatswain, a Dog.
~On the grave of the Newfoundland of George Gordon, Lord Byron
Why am I doing this? Yes, in memory of my sweet girl. But also to move a step closer to that old saying, that the best goal you can have in life is to be the person your dog already thinks you are.
Justine Dare Davis 
Oh, what a beautiful post! I’m in tears, thinking of my sweet boy, Maverick, who I lost this summer. Dogs are so special. Beautiful picture of your girl.
Eve, I know you still miss Mav like crazy. It’s a measure of how much you loved him. They leave such huge holes when they go, no matter their size.
They do. Every single one of them. But they also gift us with a lot of love and joy, so I guess that’s what we need to hang on to.
Like Eve, I am in tears.
I had to send my lovely girl, Laika, on her way to heaven on December 2008. Like yours, she was a rescue–she literally walked into our lives on Independence Day 2001, and enriched them beyond measure up until her last minute, when she looked at me–still!–with love and trust.
And I miss her every day, her and all the other dogs and cats who have loved me, despite everything.
So sorry about your girl. There is no love and trust like that of a dog.
What a beautiful post! I’ve had several wonderful dogs over the years, but two of them in particular helped me, a single mother, raise my two children. Greta was a purebred Rottweiler who stood guard over my two children (and often times over other neighborhood children as well) in the afternoons when they came home from school and were alone for a couple of hours until I got home. Abby, a rescue half Rottweiler/half Rhodesian Ridgeback, loved everyone but helped my daughter get through a rough time when she was in high school. Their lives are way too short and they leave a huge hole in our hearts when they race over the bridge. I can’t imagine living without a dog in my house.
They give us so much, don’t they? They help in ways non-dog people (I’m told they exist….) don’t even understand. And Rotties are such wonderful dogs!
I was recently (as in, eight days ago) given a young pit bull by my next door neighbor. If my guestimate on her age is correct, she was born right around the time I had to have my nearly 14 year old Rat Terrier, Lucky, put down this past spring. I gave her the birthday of April 28th, and he was put down on the 29th.
That almost sounds meant, Rosemary! Good luck with her. I am finally actively looking for the next furry one, which is no small task given what the critter would have to put up with!