I will never forget that dreadful December day. It was my senior year of high school. I was home alone studying for my psychology final that I had the next day when my dad came bursting through the front door saying “Something with Jack happened. Come outside!” My heart automatically sank; Jack was my 15-year-old mixed-breed dog whom I had had since I was in Kindergarten. I couldn’t imagine coming home to a house that he wasn’t in. He was part of my family.

I followed my dad outside and what I saw was the most heartbreaking scene I had (and probably will ever) lay my eyes on. There he was; laying on the pavement, on the brink of death. My dad explained to me how he saw a person run my dog over with their car and just drive away. I couldn’t believe it. How could a person run over a dog and just leave (a person without a heart, that’s who)?

As my dad carried my dog’s body to the backyard to bury him, my mom’s blue Volkswagen pulled into the drive. My mom was in shock and cried beside me. But I think the most heartbreaking moment in the days after Jack’s death was witnessing my other dog, Bram, just sit in the backyard looking for Jack. I’m not sure if Bram knew that Jack had gone to doggy heaven but he was in a very depressed state for a couple of weeks (didn’t eat properly, didn’t have the high-energy level we were used to, etc.).

Losing my childhood dog felt like a part of me had died. For the past 14 years, I had a buddy by my side. He was there for me through the good times and the bad. He was with me when I got my first college acceptance letter, when I lost my first tooth, the whole puberty era and everything in between. Dogs are something special, no matter how sad or down you are, they will always be there to pick you up. Dogs don’t care about how you look or what you’re wearing, all they care about is that you are there to give them the love they deserve. Dogs really are better than people sometimes. Having Jack ripped from my life in such a cruel and unexpected way really was an eye opener for me. I needed to start appreciating the little things in life more often and realize that something so dear to my heart can be here one day and gone the next.

It’s now been over a year since I lost Jack but I still think about him every day. I have a new puppy now who brings so much joy and happiness to my life but adopting a new dog still didn’t fill the void of Jack being gone. He will always hold a special place in my heart. I hope doggy heaven is treating you well.