Losing Arrow at such a young age has taught me to learn to cherish the simple moments with Bernard. I have accepted the sad truth that one day I won't get to snuggle on the couch with Bernard anymore. He is not going to live forever. I need to appreciate the time we have left without fearing for the end.

I feel like it's so easy to take moments for granted. We mindlessly pet our animals while watching TV. Or we're on our phones while we're taking our dogs for a walk. We go through the motions of our days without truly living in the moment. Our animals are always beside us. It can feel like they will always be there.

I used to feel anxious when I would think about Bernard dying. When he hit the age that Arrow was when he was diagnosed, I felt terrified. When will we lose Bernard? How much time do we have? I had a hard time even loving him as freely as I did Arrow because of the pain of losing Arrow. It took a while to open up to him the same way.

I've shifted the way I think about his finite time on earth. I don't know how much time I have with Bernard. No one will ever be able to tell me that for certain. I remember how intensely I loved Arrow and stayed present with him during his final months when we knew we could lose him any day. Why wasn't I doing the same with Bernard?

Being aware of the length of our animals' lives does not have to be scary. Many of us will lose our pet at some point. So let's love them freely. Let's put down our phones (even though we want to take 100 photos of them) and just be with them. Give them an extra snuggle. Silence your phone on your walks and just be present with them. Cherish every single moment. Knowing that their final day will come sooner than you would like can trigger inspiration instead of anxiety.