If you are a dog lover or have had multiple other cherished family pets in your life It may be hard to say who is your favorite. It might even feel wrong to single one out as favorite. We love them all so much. And they give us their whole lives. To think of having a preference for one over the other might feel like doing the others a disservice.

But, I also think it is foolhardy to refuse to consciously acknowledge this fact. Sometimes we just have a special kind of relationship with those we share our lives with. And that does nothing to diminish the relationships we have with others in our lives. This goes for our animals as well as the humans in our lives.

We have shared our home with over a dozen dogs. Each of them have made a unique place in our lives. Some were more work than others. There are dogs that are aloof and there are dogs that are literally like a shadow, or named Shadow. Sometimes dogs love to go out and adventure in the public spaces with you and other dogs are not fit for public consumption. Other dogs are your adventure companions that love hiking and camping. Some dogs just like to be at home.

I love dogs. The dogs we have shared our lives with have come to be with us in a variety of ways.

Our dog who came to be known as Big Kira because shortly after she came to us another dog named Kira joined our family and she was smaller and became known as Little Kira was a great dog.

Over the years I have met so many dogs. Especially while I volunteers at our local animal shelter. I love almost all dogs, sorry lap dogs you are not for me. But, especially when interacting with the dogs at the shelter it is easy to connect with them and feel the pull on your heartstrings urging you to take them home. We resisted the temptation more times than I would have expected.

But, when I met Kira at the shelter it was a very different feeling. She was exactly the type of dog I wanted. We had a connection like I never had with another dog. She was the only dog I had ever met there where I literally said that if she doesn’t get adopted soon she will end up living with us. And that is exactly what happened.

Big Kira as a large breed dog, part Bernese Mountain Dog and part Mastiff, was middle aged when she came to us. And unfortunately she did not get to live with us as long as we would have liked. She died of cancer after being part of our family for around two years.

But she made the most of those two years. Kira was the largest dog we have ever owned and that is saying something when we have shared our home with 6 Bernese Mountain Dogs. And Big Kira had a big personality to match her size. She was probably the friendliest dog we have ever had.

She loved to get up on the couch and snuggle with us. She would go outside and play. And she enjoyed going for walks. She was always with us.

Anyone who has ever had a particularly special bond with an animal can relate to how hard it can be to put into words what that bond is and how it feels. There is just this feeling you have. A connection.

It feels even stranger to feel this type of connection to a dog that was only part of my life for such a short time. But there it is. And maybe it is because of that short period of time we had with her that makes it feel even stronger. Not getting to experience the fullness off a life full of time with Big Kira retroactively makes our time that we did have feel. More poignant.

Losing a dog that was so full of life at a relatively young age to cancer is hard. I think it might be even harder when that dog comes into your life as an adult and then your time with them is cut even shorter by a devastating cancer that takes them too soon.

This is one of those times that I am glad I take my camera with me everywhere and take lots of photos. I have been able to capture memories and help keep them fresh and cherished for myself. And still it always feels like I took too few photos. I captured too few memories. If only I knew how this would turn out, I would have could have done more.

I will remember this fantastic dog forever.

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