While our daughter is a dog trainer, with an insight into how dogs think, communicate and behave with humans, our two sons are analytical in how they view the human side of the human-canine link. Our older son, as a historian, has his insights into the matter, linking his parents' love of their dog companions and our younger son, as a scientist accustomed to weighing the evidence gleaned by what can be proven of theories, give us his idea of why it is that his father and mother are so devoted to the care and companionship of small creatures.

From our fascination with wildlife and our satisfaction in seeing them about us, to providing sustenance for them during the wildly cold and inclement winter months in the Ottawa area, to our affection for the pets that people have accompany them through their lives. Not to speak of the matter at hand, our devastation of the loss through that most ordinary of events in all living organisms; life's span running its course into the inevitability of death.

We appreciate our little dogs for what they are and what they have meant to us; their traits and personalities, our shared experiences, and above all the care and affection shared between us. And, as our younger son pointed out, there is an obvious element of replacement, the little dogs as dependents in a proxy relationship with loving parents whose own children have gravitated into an independent life of their own. No longer in need of our presence to guide them, they now guide themselves through life and all of its encounters, positive and negative, each a learning experience broadening horizons and understanding of life itself.

Our small, dependent/independent-minded proxy companions filled a void for us that lingered with our children's departure from our most immediate intimacy. And so, once again, that void has appeared and it troubles us, as though a reminder that a vital element of our companionship is missing. We grieve together for our losses, but also come together in a common spirit of nurturance in the presence of a dependent.

While our younger son is with us, visiting for several weeks' break from his life in Vancouver, our mood is slightly lifted, with his presence ameliorating the immediate loss of our little Riley. We will always recall our time with that little scamp, just as we do our time with Button, but the adjustment is a trial, one that humbles our pleasure in life.