35 Reasons why I Was IN LOVE with A Dog

My soul-mate and furry friend; Kisses 
passed away late May, 2013, 
leaving me feeling the depths of sadness. 

Kisses lived 13.5 of her 14.5+ years - on a vegan diet. 

1. Kisses’s greetings alone were equal to 101 reasons – it was the most incredible greeting a person could ever wish for in life. She didn't mind if the whole world knew that she was ecstatic to see me. And the happy squealing was infectious; it made everyone smile. After she passed away, the first time I drove home and didn't hear “the greeting” - it was painful, as I had grown accustomed to her love.

2. She mystically came to me. Someone had abandoned her in the surrounding woods, and we had an immediate bond. Okay, I'll just say it – it was LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT! She put her trust in me; I had to live up to it ~ I had to BE trustworthy.

3. When we first found her, we wondered if we should keep her because we didn't stay all year round. A woman named Allison said she would have her, after we went for a walk on her land. Well…Kisses….who drooled and shook if you put her in a car - just took off and jumped in the car, as fast as the speed of light. Kisses made her choice quite clear, so we told her she could be our Shangri-la doggie forever.

4. Kisses killed a bird when we first met. I reacted so upset. She “got it” and stopped killing. She was not a killer, and I admired that about her very much. I always respected Kisses for how well she took to eating vegan food as well as not killing the animals in the environment.

5. I could pet her and show physical love to her at any moment of any day...no questions asked...whenever I needed it...she was there for me; a most count-on-able love.

6. She was always looking at me; our eyes connected throughout the day.

7. She gave me the opportunity to practice speaking telepathically.

8. She always wanted to be with me. She followed me, like my shadow.

9. Over the years, she had a number of aunts and uncles and caregivers - but she was loyal to me; it was therapeutic to feel such loyalty in a world where creating real loving feelings is not that easy to do.

10. Even if I left for 5 minutes, she was all happy when I returned.

11. She didn't “talk too much” or "bring me down", or distract me from what I wanted to think about.

12. It was great entertainment to watch her swim around a natural pool on a sunny summer day. I’m not entertained by animals being trained, enslaved, and harmed for my amusement, but this was good clean free entertainment!

13. One would think it would be a burden, but it actually lifted me to help Kisses grow old - like bringing the water to her, helping her walk, making steps for her, making sure she received the right amount of exercise and supplements. Helping her grow old made me more soulful and empathetic.

14. She was a free, happy dog. Her tail wagged a lot. Her happy tail-wagging was a good source of happiness for me.

15. She had a thing for protecting me. I always felt safe with her. She was watching over me. And she wasn't vicious, but she would protect me if I needed it - but the thing is, I didn't really need it, I live in Gentle World.

16. Our relationship was the closest I came to motherhood. With Kisses, I was able to have an almost parental experience, without adding to the overpopulation of our planet.

17. We shared meals together – we both felt good about that feeling that we shared and ate together; except for the foods I learned were toxic to dogs, such as macadamia nuts, chocolate, onions/garlic, raisins/grapes, avocado; her favorite, etc.

18. She was so easy, so honest. If you gave her a reality, she responded accordingly. If you didn't like her that much, she responded accordingly. She liked those who liked her; it was as simple as that.

19. Soul (the child of some friends), Kisses and I spent many hours together in a little pack. We walked together, played together, had sleep-overs together. I enjoyed seeing how a young vegan child and a vegan dog communicated with each other.

Kisses and Soul (at 6 months), playing "stickie" together! 

20. In her youth, she was very athletic. She scaled mountain sides, crossed rushing rivers - her muscular legs were impressively propelled by plant protein.

21. It was comic relief seeing how serious she took her self-appointed job of guarding us and the house. When I moved near to the house, she would position herself right on the corner where she could watch me in one direction and the house in the other.

22. Kisses and I lived together in a spot called Tranquility, that was lacking a river's pool. One year, the river had changed from the floods over winter and like magic, there was a clean gorgeous small pool. I named it the Kisses Pool as it was a perfect size for her. Kisses and I shared many years together playing in the Kisses pool.

23.  We rescued a pregnant dog (Bella) who had 8 puppies, and then she abandoned them. When Bella was here, Kisses was respectful of her and didn't go near the puppies; just gave Bella and her babies their space. When Bella ran away, Kisses immediately rose to the occasion and cared for the puppies. This made me love her even more.

24. Kisses saw my soul. She didn't love me for shallow reasons like looks or money, but for reasons deeper than that.

25. Kisses comforted me through the night. For many years, I never felt alone.

26. Our relationship was built upon mutual-respect.

27. She found herself living in a vegan community with gentle people and guests from all over the world on a regular basis, despite the fact that she was not enthralled with humans when we found her. She changed her ways and if you got past the unpleasant "bark upon arrival" – she was generally friendly with everyone. She learned to accept humans.

28. Just as being in love with a human makes you melt when you touch the one you are in love with, I also experienced this with Kisses. It was calming for me to touch her.

29. She preferred having me all to herself.  She made me feel special.

30. Because she came from abusive beginnings, I always wanted her to know the best of human-nonhuman relationships, to combat the way humans treat other animals. Her situation inspired me to Love from the height of my being.

31. We once rescued a kitten that we called “Hugs” - so we lived with “Hugs” and “Kisses”. We rescued other felines who lived with us temporarily until we could re-home them, as well as other canines. She lived harmoniously with other species, whatever sex, age, breed.

32. Let’s face it, it is the epitome of pleasure to have a close friend who is another species and to be able to communicate and live together.

33. Like all dogs, Kisses really loved tummy rubs.

34.  When she got sick the last year of her life, she started sleeping by my feet. We used to sleep side by side; her head on the pillow next to me. I could feel that she was not wanting me to hear her congested breathing and it seemed to me that she was consciously preparing me for her forthcoming death. It was really sad, but the act showed her deep caring for me.

35. The game we played called “stickie” was one of the fun highlights of my life! It was impossible for me to get the stick from Kisses! She loved playing Stickie with my friend, Magic. She really got into serious athleticism with him. Magic and I buried Kisses together, remembering the good old days and the great pure joy of playing “stickie” with Kisses.

I will be forever grateful for Kisses.

My last photo of Kisses

Click here for live footage of Kisses