When I graduated from college, my mother sent our family dog to live with me. In the next four years, as her health declined in old age, I was often aggravated by all the time it took to care for her, clean her and clean up after her. I found this book by chance, and it spoke to my heart. I tried to remember it every day and spend a few minutes just sitting with my dear old friend and appreciating her - and tell her that I loved her. And it truly helped me when I had to make the most difficult decision of my life, to put her to sleep.
I have told many people about this book over the years. I truly believe that its message can help anyone, young or old, through the aging and dying of a dearly beloved pet, and if discovered early in that relationship, provide a conscious framework for love and appreciation that will build the memories that last a lifetime.
sweet book, but flawed
This was a very sweet book, but I agree with the other reviewer who said that if your child didn't tell her dog that she loved him every single day, it can lead to tears and misunderstandings. I flinched when I read that part aloud, and then had to explain to my daughter that we showed our dog how much we loved him every day by taking such good care of him and loving on him. I think she accepted it, but I would hate for her to feel guilty because of the way this book worded it. I also didn't like that it downplayed everyone else's feelings about the dog, like mentioning that the siblings loved him, but not as much as the little boy. We all loved our sweet dog, and we are all feeling the grief. It was a good concept, but missed the mark, IMO.
For anyone that has ever had a "best dog in the whole world".
This is an outstanding book that shows the lifelong bond between child and beloved family dog. It uses simple words and brilliant illustrations to show this special lifelong commitment. I would recommend this book to anyone that has ever loved their pet.
I'll Always Love You
If you have ever loved and lost a dog, this is the perfect book for you or anyone you know who has also experienced the same. It is a wonderful gift to give to friends (adults and children)to let them know you understand their loss. It's a must read to help children understand the loss of a pet.
Very helpful for young kids
My 4yo niece had to face losing her dog and we used this book in the week leading up to his death. It allowed her to say goodbye to him with a sense that she'd expressed her love. She had no problem with the "every night" part of it that some have objected to. That might have been more of an issue for a somewhat older child, but at 4 she just took it as it was.
One side effect of reading several books about pets dying is that she was disappointed she didn't get to, "see Lucy [the dog] die." So many of these books feature pets dying and being buried at home. That's not been our experience with any of our pets so far, as most of them have had to be put to sleep following a catastrophic illness of one type or another. And no burying them in the backyard either.
