Hey, everybody out there. I know it’s been a long time since you’ve heard from me, but to tell ya the truth, I’ve just been too sad to keep up with my K9 reporter duties. Yeah, yeah, I know I’m usually the happiest snortin’ dog in the world, but lately my tail hasn’t been wagging a whole darn lot.

My sweet Sophie, the pawsomest gal pawl a pooch could ever wish for, passed over the Rainbow Bridge just before Thanksgiving last year.

I was super nice to her when she was sick because I really thought I could help her get back on her feet and she’d be chasing me around again, just like in the good old days. But she just got sicker, and one night she let our humans know she was ready to make her last trip to the vet. (I tell ya, that brave pooch loved going to the vet right up to the end!)

Ever since then I’ve just been moping around. My stash of toys just doesn’t seem as fun as when I had a reason to guard it. Why bother barking at squirrels when there’s nobody to chase them with? So mostly I just snooze a lot and dream sweet dreams about Sophie.

You may find this hard to believe (I sure do), but some humans don’t think pets can mourn. Well, I can tell ya, we certainly do.

In fact, waaay back in 1966, the ASPCA did a study called Companion Animal Mourning. It found that after the death of their pawl, the behavior of 66 percent of the pooches changed. Over a third of the dogs ate less than usual, and 11 percent stopped eating at all. As for talking, 63 percent either barked more or got quieter. More than half of them got more kissy and clingy with their humans. So yeah, I think this pretty much proves us pooches hurt from broken hearts just like humans do.

What can a human do to make a sad dog feel better, especially when the human’s probably just as sad? Here are some tips, based on my experience.

It’s good for both humans and hounds to get lots of exercise instead of sitting around moping, so grab a leash and take your dog for a nice, long walk.

Take your pooch to the dog park. He’ll like kibbitzing and running with the other pooches, especially since his special pawl isn’t around to play with anymore.

It’s perfectly OK to spoil us rotten at this time. Feel free to bake us a batch or 10 of peanut butter yum-yums. Give us lots and lots of tummy rubs. Let us snuggle up next to you in your bed. Spend as much time as you can with us – it’ll make us both feel better, I promise.

My humans are starting to look for a new pawl for me, so my tail’s been wagging a little bit more lately. There will never be another Sophie, but I know they’ll find me a pawsome friend. When they do, I can’t wait to tell you all about her!

Leroy is a 4-year-old “Terribull” adopted from a Carson, Calif., shelter by i Love Dogs writer Laura Goldman. When he’s happy (which is almost all the time), Leroy snorts just like a pig. He loves his cool stash of chew toys (a little too much). He still misses his sweet gal Sophie, but he’s head-over-paws in puppy love with his new gal pawl, Ella.