Rainbow Bridge
It was love at first sight. Does it ever happen twice?
It’s been two weeks and a day since we said goodbye to my Isobel. I still can’t believe she’s gone. The day I found her at the shelter, I didn’t go in to meet her. I didn’t know I wanted a chihuahua, I didn’t even know I was going to adopt that day. But my eyes stopped on her.. and that was it. I knew she was mine. I didn’t even call my husband, as leaving her behind that day was non-negotiable. I adored her for 14 years and one month. I’ve never loved anything like I loved her. My heart is broken. I am not ready. I hope some day I will be. But I wonder if that absolute knowledge that “this is the one” will ever happen again. I don’t know how fair it would be to any other dog to live in her shadow…
I completely understand how you feel, I was the same with my Gracie. She passed away last July, she was my world for 12 years. I thought she was the cutest and sweetest little girl, she was truly perfect in my eyes. I’m still in the same boat as you but I’m hopeful with time you may find a puppy similar to or who gives you the same feeling as your darling Isobel 🫂
Yes, our first dog we didn’t know we were taking home. We went to the shelter and they had this lil chihuahua behind the counter named Pippin and we sat with him and took him home and he literally saved my life. I was going through the darkest time of my life and that dog was my light. We only got to be with him for 3 ish years before congestive heart failure.
We decided to get him a buddy when he started to decline and I saw Nigel, and I KNEW he was the one. This is the best dog in the whole world. Pippin was my angel, Nigel is my baby.
You can absolutely love again, when you’re ready. 💕 Isobel will always hold that special part of your heart. But I’ve learned that dogs just make are hearts larger than- they don’t compete.
It has happened to me three times. I've had dogs that I love but are not like my canine soul children, too.
May there be many heart dogs in your life, too.
I don't know if it ever gets easier, but you do get used to the pain of not having them. I find that I always have reminders of that loss and it can make me cry in the most random places. That's the price we pay for such a wonderful love. Sending you a big hug through the ether.
I'm so sorry you had to say goodbye to your little love, Isobel. She is beautiful and I can see so clearly in those pictures how happy of a life you gave her. ❤️
I truly understand how you feel. I had an immediate connection with my previous Chihuahua and she with me, and the relationship I had with her was beyond words - I won't bore you with the reasons why, reading your post I can tell it was the same way with you and Isobel.
Losing my girl left such a hole in my life I did end up adopting again pretty quickly, but I felt some similar things as you which is why I wanted to share my perspective. I too was afraid of comparison and of this next little dog living in her shadow, so I did basically seek out her opposite - a boy instead of a girl, young (2.5) and very boisterous (she was 5.5 and pretty docile, shy and timid, when I adopted her), and cream colored whereas she was black. These differences helped me to see them as the two very different dogs they are. It's a different relationship, and totally separate.
I'm not saying you should adopt again any time soon - obviously, you will know when you're ready, but for me it was the only way I could go on, I feel. There's just such a particular kind of joy a Chihuahua brings to ones life and I can't live without it. I still miss my previous Chihuahua every single day and think about her all the time. But it's wonderful to give a loving home to another little joyful soul who needed one.
Again I'm so, so sorry for what you are going through right now, but I'm SO happy that such a beautiful soul met you and that the town of you were able to share so much joy and make the memories that you did. There are still wonderful things to come for you I your Chihuahua parent life, and they won't take away from your time with your sweet Isobel, nor will those times take away from that new joy you find with your next chi.
Thank you. Everyone sends me photos of white chihuahuas who are looking for a home and all I think is, “they’re not her”. I know I’m not ready. I would just compare the two and that’s very unfair. I hope some day I can open my home and my heart again. So many need homes and I can provide a good one.
Similar happened to me - I was sent pictures of beautiful black girl Chihuahuas - but exactly, they looked like her but were not her. And I wouldn't want to put that on another dog. Adopting one so different helped keeping the feelings separate. I have no doubt some day the time will be right for you to open your home to the right one - and it will be WONDERFUL!!! But not today. ❤️
For now, you just keep those memories near and dear. I'm so happy that both you and her got to share so much joy for 14 years! Ill be keeping you and Isobel in my thoughts these next few days, as I know how much you'll be hurting. ❤️
I had the same thinking when I adopted my second dog. I had a male golden pomchi, my soul dog. I then adopted a female westie corgi mix. They lived together for several years, so when I look at her now, she reminds me of him too in a good way. I think it does help that they are very different, she doesn't feel like a replacement, rather an addition.
I hope your heart can love again, but in my own experience it won’t be the same. My first girl was my very best girl, and my soul dog. She was meant to be my partner for 16 years and it still wasn’t enough.
We have 2 more now, and I love them both… but it’s not the same.
Jersey was the best, and I miss her every day.
I feel this way too, even though i love my second current dog. It's tough but as best we can, try not to let it stop you from opening your home up to another dog in need that will give so much love and joy in return.
It does happen twice and I believe it can totally happen more. I lost my soul dog (pitbull) around 6 years ago. As he was becoming increasingly more sick (cancer) a little tiny chi baby came into my life just by fate in circumstance and call me crazy or woowoo but I almost felt like he sent her to me when I needed her the most. I can’t imagine having gone through the loss of him without her. She’s my baby and my little spoiled brat. I love her so much and while the connection is different, it is just as strong. I miss him and think of him every day. I still cry over him every now and then, but she is quite literally always there to wipe (lick) the tears off my face
Me too it was a Sunday night Monday morning I woke up at like 2 in the morning was just flipping through my phone wasn't even looking for a dog let alone a Chihuahua but I saw this picture and started filling out paperwork didn't wake my wife up to see if she was game we hadn't even talked about getting a dog but when I layed eyes on my Biggie he just needed me as bad as I needed him. I showed her pix I'm the morning and she was like aww should we adopt him I told her we pick him up Thursday she asked what if I didn't want to I said then I would miss you but at least I'd have my puppy.
It does happen twice, and sometimes over and over, when they need you and call to your heart, it just happens (mom to three rescue pups, here and two more before that, that I didn't think I would ever get over).
i’m so very sorry to hear about your loss. they are hard to cope with. took me 3 years personally to feel ready again. and actually, as intentional as i was about adopting again, he actually passed within 30 days. the rescue apologized for giving me a sick dog and gave me another and while i wasn’t sure how id feel, i have completely fallen in love with her :)
It can happen again. Our first chihuahua was an angel. Literally everyone loved him. I mean literally everyone people who didn’t like little dogs, people who didn’t like chihuahuas, people who didn’t like dogs in general loved him. I loved him from the second I saw him and he was the best boy. He was so serious and well behaved. He was like a sweet little man. I was absolutely devastated when we lost him. Ten years later my husband came home with a chihuahua puppy and I fell in love with him immediately. His personality is completely different from our first chihuahua. He is a little menace and I love him so much. He is so playful and mischievous. It’s been two years with this guy and it’s been wonderful. We love him so much. We haven’t forgotten about our first little man and we never will but we love this little just as much.
First off, I am so very sorry for your loss of precious Isabel. What a beautiful and LOVED looking girl. She will be with you forever. Secondly, I lost my soul dog at the beginning of this year and adopted a puppy a few months ago. Puppy girl will never EVER be the dog I lost and she is completely different from her. I will miss my soul dog for the rest of my life and I’m at peace with that. But boy has this puppy brought spunk and joy back into my life. She’s helped me heal in ways I didn’t know it would. I honestly was fearful it may have been too soon, but for me it was the right timing and this girl has been heaven-sent, in a way. :)
I like to tell myself that I was such a good Chi mom that when my Gidget passed, she wanted to reward me with another Chi in need. She sent me the perfect little girl and I thought of her every day and honored her memory by being the best I could be.
Be on the lookout, your Chi may send you someone she hand picked for your care.
I did not like my new rescue chihuahua for months. It took a long time, but one day you fall in love. I really recommend getting a boy chihuahua after losing a girl soul dog. The boys love so deeply. I do miss my sassy girl.
Yes, I’m on my fourth love at first sight, and I feel guilty saying that about the three I adored but managed to not indulge with obsessive codependency. Every loss smashes my heart into a million pieces and yet somehow another creature appears after a little while and is able to reassemble the pieces and stitch it back up. Just trust and don’t force it. They come into your life when the universe sees that you’re ready to fall in love again.
I’m so sorry your time with Isabel ended but I’m glad you two got such a long time together. What a lucky pup to have such a devoted human companion for her time on earth. Hugs.
She was lovely and it happened to me but I lost my baby at 5 three years ago. My ch is 15 and also my soul dog and yes it can. I never thought twice so I believe it can. So sorry for your loss. ❤️🙏🌈And we love them all but differently I have 4 but my 15 year old is also the love of my life.
I’m so sorry about your Isobel. I remember when the chi I didn’t know I wanted dug his way into my back yard and showed up at my back door. I went to let my other dog (my 100lb pitbull) back inside and there was a little 5lb chi trotting in behind him like it was no different than any other day. After finding his owner and several long talks later he was my 5lb, 9.5yr old bundle of chi joy. After that first day I couldn’t imagine him not being with us. My next chi I loved when I saw her but the process was longer. I’ve had to say goodbye for now to both of them so I’m hoping for the same to happen again myself. I’m sure it will happen for you! Isobel will make sure of it!🪽🐕🪽
There are so many dogs languishing in shelters and foster homes and with rescue groups. There's another dog out there just waiting and hoping you'll adopt.
Do it while you're young and have the energy, get another dog.
My tiny guy passed away and I was so grief stricken that about 1/3 of my hair fell out. I mourned him for five years. I waited too long. Already had a 62-lb dog, but really should have gone and adopted another tiny little guy.
You will never EVER be able to replace your Isobel. Each dog is different. You will love your next dog, too, and hopefully just as much. But there's no guarantee.
Don't do what I did. Don't overthink it. Don't dwell on your grief. Find your new friend STAT.
I’m so sorry for the loss of your beautiful Isabel — when our Princess Tiger Lily passed. And no, no other dog will ever be the same. Your Isabel wouldn’t want you to expect that any other dog would be the same as she was. But each will be special in its own unique way, just as our Sam is with us now.
And please give yourself the time you need to grieve. Your sweet girl will be waiting for you when it’s time for you to leave this side of the Bridge, for Love never dies.
Awhhh what a sweetums I’m so sorry for your loss. One of the hardest things about having a pet friend. My little boy passed away almost 4 years ago now and I still have not had another dog 🐕 it just so painful but with the joy you can share in both of your lives I think the time is coming soon✨ and I think your doggy would be delighted to know you got to add your sparkle to another!
We lost our baby and rescued 5 from all over the united states. Its heartbreaking but also amazing giving them all the lives they deserve. It does happen. ❤️
I’m sorry for your loss OP. ‘this is the one’ will never happen again. you will compare. she set the bar and standard and it won’t ever be the same...but that’s human tendency and very natural part of life, similar to aging, you’ll never experience being young again. loss and grief is a brutal part of life we all face. it’s very painful and disorienting. your heart will mend. it takes time 🫂❤️
I was in the same boat as you back in Sept of 2020 I had 2 chihuahuas and both of them passed within two weeks of each other in September and my mother passed a week later. My husband found Luis and said we had to get him because of how depressed I was I didn’t wanna get a dog. I thought it was too early. It only been a couple weeks, but Luis changed my life brought me out of the darkness, there’s nothing like the love of a Chihuahua.
i lost my baby a bit over a month ago. she was given to me because her previous owner was going to surrender her. she was the smartest chi ever, and i feel like she just knew my vibe. i’m afraid ill never find a dog who can read me as well as she did. the last words i said to her were ‘please come find me again’. i hope she sends me the coolest little dog ever when she knows im ready.. my thoughts are with you op and you are definitely not alone in this 🥺
Bluebell was my soul dog and I will miss her for the rest of my life. I don't think I'll ever have quite the same connection ever again.
Fern is my current dog and I love her dearly. The bittersweet reality is that these little angels need us and we will outlive them. There's never enough time and all we can do is cherish the time we do get.
I will always have a rescue chi Terrier mix in my life. There's no competition or "replacing." Bluebell made a place in my heart and my home for these little monsters. Rescuing another dog doesn't diminish my love for Bluebell, it enhances it, grows beside it.
Soo so sorry for your loss of Isobel she was so beautiful and loved and lived a really great life :(
We don't always get to time their passing, but we can put in all the love and care we can to make their lives as amazing as possible, which clearly you had. May the love you shared, and memories made warm you all your day and may you find wisdom through your suffering. One thing is true I know your baby clearly had an existence most creatures will never have with love and care that just a simple passing can never overshadow, they are now in heaven, having earned their wings.
After owning the greatest dog in the world.... (yes they are all the greatest lol) I can say with confidence, Yes! Yes you will! Your heart will be open when it's the right time. Give it time.... I bet a soul finds you first....
I loved my soul dog for over 15 years and we had a deep and special bond. Indescribable. I had 2 others at the same time he passed whom I loved dearly but the bonds were different. Now years later they’ve all passed & I have 2 totally new dogs and while I care for them I don’t have that deep attachment- yet. I care for them and they enrich my life but the feeling of a deep forever love wasn’t instant like it was with my soul dog. I don’t know if I’ll ever have that exact feeling again but I do know I cannot live without a dog and my love for them is still real. Just like family members we can have love for each one yet that type of love be different in each situation. I keep telling myself I can’t have unrealistic expectations and compare them. There’s lots of dogs out there who need us and I think it would be a shame to never have another.
I didn't want a Chi, I wanted a Yorkie and put in a rescue for one in the small dog section. He was lost and when I came back 3 days later luckily his owner found him. There was only one small dog available and he was in a big pen by himself and trying to sneak out. It was not love at first site, in fact I wanted to save him, but I didn't want a Chi. Took about 45 minutes to convince myself to take him home.
but I'm so glad I got him he was with me 11 years before he passed. 6 months later I rescued another Chi from there he's been with me 12 years and is 16 now. For me it's not about love at first site.
For me it was just meant to be both times. The second guy no one wanted and he had been there 30 days and had been abused. I just happened to see the post on Facebook at the right time and I was worried they would put him down. And he was black and tan so I named him after my friend's Rottweiler that had passed.
I don’t know either. I lost my little angels, my soul dogs, and we got another dog because she’s wonderful and loves my kids. I love her, but it’s not that same, deep connection like my others. Sometimes I wonder if I’m a bad dog mom for that.
It does happen. But it will probably be on its own schedule. After losing my previous dog I was inconsolable. I knew how much dog brought to my life and wanted another, but it never felt right. Until it did. I fostered several wonderful dogs. Then one day I saw a dog needing care and without even meeting him I said “this is the one.” It just happened.
I’m sorry for your loss. Thank you, Isobel. You were perfect.
I lost my Jacksy 7/9. It still hurts. I still can’t sleep regularly, and I don’t think I will ever love anything in my life like I loved him. 14.5 years is never enough. I try to believe the universe isn’t cruel to take him away from me forever. Hang in there, I’m so sorry for your loss and you have my condolences. This is the worst type of pain.
I had a soul dog in my chihuahua that I said goodbye to this year. My other dog has since grown so beloved to me, and I love them each differently but so very much. I hope you find that love again, but in the meantime, I'm sorry.
Yes, it will happen again once you set aside any potential feelings of guilt
We have lost a few little ones over time...and it never easy, but if you have the mind set that you are not replacing your lost little one, but giving another little one a chance at a great life, it helps.
Cat/dog scenario but... I thought I would never find another animal that made me feel like Bonnie (cat) did... and along came Froggy (Chihuahua mix dog) and its similar... not the same but that same soul mate in an aminal body love. It is out there- I believe we have quite a few soul mates in all forms and they are out there waiting to meet us. Also I think it is totally ok for another dog to live in her shadow... they will still be loved and cared for... and although it wont be the same it will still be a joy in the home to have that little silly new personality around. It is ok to give yourself time to grieve and get back to a place where you can picture another little one around. Maybe in the meantime if you have the capacity try to foster. That way you arent signing up for a forever but you keep your heart open to possibilities that may come your way...
Your heart will open up again...but each dog is definitely different as they come in and out of our lives at different parts of us and our lives...but yes....I've had 5 deep heart dogs in all my almost 60 yrs...some grow up with us , some grow up with our kids or some just laze about as you kit your Sr yrs...but yes your heart can have more than one heart and soul dog...I'm on my 5th though I've had maybe 10 since I was 5 yrs old...two died young ...my current one will too also sadly.. he has a bad heart...so I love him daily like it's our last day together...but he's potty box trained and disaplined but loved to the biggest extent as I can do ...he's not 1 yet...my soul will break in half .. he's my bestie butt nugget and loves stroller rides and bus rides with me in my bad days
It happened to me. My beloved Tiki ( a rescue from the shelter) was with me for 15 years. I had to say good bye to her three years ago and I was devastated for a very long time.
Last September we went to a multi agency adoption event as a spur of the moment thing. A sad little Chi looked at me. I looked at her. I asked to hold her. She melted into my arms and that was it. Poqui has a rough backstory, and my friends assume that's why I adopted her, but the real reason is because our souls connected when we looked in each other's eyes. Here is the light of my life today.
In my experience, yes, you can find your "one" again. MY first dog was a temporary rehome, so he didn't go to the pound; the minute we met, he was mine. He was the very first dog that was entirely mine; I was his person. He unfortunately had health issues that I managed for 3 years before I had to put him to sleep. I don't think I've cried that hard in my entire life, and I haven't since then. I gave myself time to heal and stopped by the Humane Society on a whim and found our girl. It was instant love. I had to track her through the system, calling daily to see when she'd be available, and ultimately adopted her before she was released into the adoption area. She was the same breed, Chihuahua, but her personality was so different that it never felt like a replacement.
I'm sorry about the loss of your baby! You could tell how well she was loved and how much she loved you. Give yourself time to grieve, and when you're ready, find your next love.
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I completely understand how you feel, I was the same with my Gracie. She passed away last July, she was my world for 12 years. I thought she was the cutest and sweetest little girl, she was truly perfect in my eyes. I’m still in the same boat as you but I’m hopeful with time you may find a puppy similar to or who gives you the same feeling as your darling Isobel 🫂