Heart Dog: Surviving the Loss of Your Canine Soul Mate

The death of any dog is hard. The death of a Heart Dog – a canine soul mate – is much, much worse ... Canine soul mates may happen just once in a lifetime. With such great love comes epic grief after your Heart Dog dies. Even if you’ve experienced pet loss before, life without your canine soul mate is much harder. Typical grief advice isn’t enough. Sometimes challenging traditional thinking about grief, Heart Dog answers all the big questions about canine soul mates, offers practical ideas for coping with each day’s dose of grief, and provides inspiration for finding your place in the world after such a profound loss. Strategies and insights come from the author and 500 people who participated in an online survey. Others have survived the grief. You can too. Let Heart Dog be your guide.

Advance Praise for Heart Dog!
“Honest, concise, and ultimately hopeful, veteran author and dog-lover Roxanne Hawn has transformed the deep pain of losing her canine soul mate Lilly into an empathetic guide that provides wisdom and comfort to any of us who have experienced the loss of a much beloved pet. Balancing her own story with those shared by her readers, Hawn walks the reader through the painful process of loss from the early stages of grief through the memorials that help us heal. So many people struggling with their feelings ask themselves, ‘Am I alone in feeling this way?’ and ‘Will I ever get better?’ Heart Dog will assure them, with candor and compassion, the answers — in order — are “No” and “Yes.” - Dr. Jessica Vogelsang, veterinarian and author of All Dogs Go to Kevin

“When I lost my Heart Dog, luckily I had a few long-distance friends who knew what I was going through, and they were an immense help. If you’re experiencing the shock and devastation of losing your canine soul mate, and none of your friends and family seem to understand, Roxanne Hawn’s words in Heart Dog can be that long-distance friend that you need. Told from the vantage point of her own devastating grief, along with input from a survey of 500 others who’ve lost their heart dogs, the book helps you understand what to expect in the coming days, weeks, months and more as you slog through your grief and find your new normal. Heart Dog would make a great gift, for yourself or a loved one suffering the profound loss of a heart dog.” - Jackie Bouchard, USA Today bestselling author of Rescue Me, Maybe

“Roxanne Hawn has the rare gift of melding emotion and logic in good writing. She offers the practical advice of dealing with the day-by-day, step-by-step acceptance of the loss of a heart dog. Never preachy, never judgmental, this book offers the reader tools and the space to deal with the emptiness of losing a best friend.” - Leland Dirks, author of Seven Dogs in Heaven

“A hopeful, encouraging read. Heart Dog is like having your best friend put their arm around your shoulder and tell you everything’s going to be okay.” - Peggy Frezon, author of Faithfully Yours

“Roxanne’s experience mirrored so many of my own emotions I felt after losing my Maltese, Angel, nearly 20 years ago. Having had multiple dogs throughout my life, I really hadn’t considered any of them a Heart Dog until remembering my grief over Angel. I wish I had this book then.” - Kerri Fivecoat-Campbell, Author of Living Large in our Little House: Thriving in 480-Square Feet with Six Dogs, a Husband and One Remote

“Heart Dog does an amazing job of capturing and exploring the personal, and often indescribable, feelings of grief and loss that come with the death of a treasured pet. This book is a great resource for anyone currently grieving the loss of their Heart Dog.” - Dr. Stacy D. Meola, veterinarian and board-certified veterinary emergency and critical care specialist