When you go off to college, there’s many general things you’re obviously going to miss; whether it be your nice and comfy bed or home cooked meals. However, if there’s one thing that I miss the most, it would definitely have to be my dogs.

Now don’t get me wrong, of course I also miss my family! However, not having those loving companions always at your side is an indescribable kind of void you get when being away from them.

I’m the type that is constantly giving my dogs so much attention that they get to the point where they get annoyed with me and I basically just never leave them alone. Going from being able to do that every day to rarely ever seeing them is extremely heartbreaking and a huge adjustment to get used to.

A few of the things I find myself doing when I’m missing them are pretty pathetic.

• Having my younger sibling send me picture and video updates of them.

"Hey sis, I'm missing Oscar and Riley... can you send me something of them?" is honestly how I roll every day. It may not be the same as physically being able to be with them, but just seeing how they're doing really helps out.

• Getting extremely excited whenever you see another dog on campus.

I’ll be riding my bike to class and if I ride past a dog, my head will practically do a complete 360 just to look at it for a little while longer. You’d be surprised, it’s actually pretty rare to see a dog on campus, so I have to cherish that moment for as long as I can. It also may not be the same as seeing my own dogs, but it’s still relatively similar and better than nothing.

• Daydreaming about them during class.

....enough said.

• Face-timing them on their birthdays.

Guilty.

Clearly, I really love my dogs and being apart from them is definitely an internal struggle that only other fellow dog owners would understand. However, the moment you see them again when you go home to visit is pretty surreal. Distance truly does make the heart grow fonder!