I've never loved anything as much as I loved my dogs.

Loving them was easy.

Feed them and you get wet kisses and a friend that sits next to you at the table, waiting for you to drop an unexpected treat. Let them sleep in your bed and you've got a personal heater, alarm clock, and pillow, all in one.

Loving a dog is beautiful, but the love of a dog is even more so. the unconditional nature of the love is what makes pups special. They will love you no matter who you are, what you do, or what you say.

They are your pet, and you are their world.

But what comes with getting a dog is something inevitable.

Losing a dog is the most difficult part.

I remember holding my Rocky, an ancient, black chihuahua with gray hairs around his wet nose and the worst breath you could imagine. We rescued him when his owners were moving and couldn't bring him with. I held him in my arms one school morning on our way to the veterinary clinic. He was having seizures.

I felt him stop breathing as soon as we parked, but when we got out of the car, he was breathing heavily again.

That morning, we had to put Rocky down. He was in too much pain, and keeping him alive would make his life unbearable.

When we rescued Rocky, we had recently lost two dogs that I had grown up with. I considered these dogs my brothers. The day we rescued Rocky, he started to rescue us. Sure, his love was weird and smelly like his breath, but it was love nonetheless. Unconditional and quirky and funny love.

The time that dogs spend with us is short-lived, but beautiful.

But it's short-lived because, while people need to learn to love and spread love, dogs are born with love in their hearts. Their only job is to share it with us.