I have never written a blog before.  But I need to write this in response to a piece I read last night, from a young woman named Rebecca whose Corgi died.

In August of 1994, my husband got me a tri-colored Pembroke for our first anniversary. Her name was Audrey.  She was spunky, funny, smart, and all things Corgi. We adored her.

The following February, Audrey & I accompanied my husband on a shopping trip.  Between stops, we had a picnic.  The last shop was not dog friendly, so we left Audrey in the car.  When we came back about 20 minutes later, we found that she had gotten into the picnic leftovers.  She had worked herself into a foil potato chip bag, and she had suffocated.  I know exactly how it felt to remove that bag from Teddy; I took it off Audrey.

The fact that your post so moves me says that I still love her.  But I also have loved five other Corgis in the 17 years since this happened.  And I know that it may feel hard to hear this, but I encourage you to think about welcoming a different Corgi to help you go forward.  We lost Audrey on a Thursday.  On Tuesday, we went to see our vet, a Corgi breeder, about Corgis in general.  Was Audrey truly exceptional or are they all as wonderful as she was?  He told us that they are all wonderful, and that he also had an older puppy at this kennel that was being rejected as a show puppy, but would we adopt her?  Of course, we did.  Five days after we lost Audrey.  And- yes- I cried on her head a lot.  But she was totally OK with that.  And she dried my tears with very sloppy kisses. 

I also see in your post that you are blaming yourself for this.  Freak accidents happen.  The fact that you DIDN'T deserve it and that it came out of the blue is part of what makes it a freak accident.  Looking at your photos, you are a very fun person for a Corgi.  Beating yourself up with "what if" and "if only" games won't help.  The hard part is forgiving yourself.  We named our new puppy Gracie; Grace- the forgiveness we are given even before we can ask for it.

If life will let you, I heartily encourage you to look and see if there is a Corgi out there right now who needs the great home you have to offer. Perhaps you will rescue each other.

J.