I am a huge fan of all animals, but dogs and cats are especially important to me. Almost all of my childhood memories include one of our dogs. My family has always had Golden Retrievers and I’ve loved every single one of them. However, when I was a young teenager a new breed of dog was introduced to me. Known as the “gentle giant” I met my very first Newfoundland dog. His name was Garth and he belonged to a gentleman I knew and I fell head over heels in love with the breed.

For years to follow I told my parents and everyone I knew that I would have a Newfoundland some day. Well here it is many years later, I’m 30 years old, and I have my first Newfoundland, who is now 11 months old and goes by the name Gus. I have my very own “gentle  giant”. Due to the size of these dogs, I realize that their life span is shorter than most dogs being that it is 8-10 years. I know what pain it is to lose a dog and I know he will  probably be one of my greatest loses due to the fact that he is officially the first dog that I have on my own. On the other hand, my life will be greater in these years to come because I have the pleasure of having him in my life. And like many of your friends told you when you were losing Sprite, I hope that I am giving Gus a great life. And for that reason, regardless the horrible pain we go through when we lose our furry family members, I will always have a dog in hopes that they have a good life because of me. It’s hopefully my way of giving back to the animals that have given me such joy. Dogs do so many great things for people and mostly its just by a simple wag of their tail or just by simply sitting beside you letting you know they are there with you no matter what. Not only that, but dogs bring people together.

— Lindsay from Huntingdon, PA