Let’s face it: Whether you’re on the giving end or the receiving end, breakups are pretty much the worst. They’re messy and complicated and confusing and downright sad, and at the end of the day, we’re not really all that sure if we’ll ever love or be loved again.
Which is the gazillionth reason why being a pet parent, or simply a friend to a dog, is the best—they’ll give you unconditional affection no matter what, and they’ll make meeting a new dog-loving date a walk in the park. (Probably literally.)
Going through a breakup of your own? Never fear! We’ve got tips that’ll make any dog lover happy to have their dog at their side when heartbreak hits.
Unconditional Affection—Fur Real
When you’re eating a giant plate of nachos in your bed and dump a glob of guacamole on the sweats you’ve been wearing for a solid week straight and are immediately reminded of the great sadness of your current state, your dog is all like, “Hey, I still love you.” And that helps. It really helps.
TP Love
Normally when your dog goes nuts and chews up all the toilet paper, you get really, really mad. But now it’s almost kind of cute, like they’re just doing everything everything they can to mop up all your tears. So the mess is worth it, really.
So Caught Up
When humans get tangled in things in real life, it’s generally not cute and mostly embarrassing—no matter what the movies lead us to believe. But when pups—pugs specifically, naturally—get all caught up? As Usher would say, “Got me feelin’ it.”
Cute Aggression
When you miss just squeezing and kissing the you-know-what out of someone, your dog’s smushy little face is there and ready to be smooched.
Role Reversal
Welp. That’s a lot of tongue. We appreciate the sentiment?
Spidey Kiss
There’s a small window of time post-breakup where people kind of go along with whatever you want because your heart is in a very fragile and delicate state—dogs included. Reenacting the ever-so-famous Spiderman kiss to remind you that love really does exist? Yeah, you better milk that one while you can.
Retail Therapy
Some of us cope by reinventing ourselves and buying all of the things. Shopping’s always better when you’ve got a partner in crime, right? Especially when she’s as, uh, fashion-forward as this little lady.
Work. It. Out.
You might want a new bod to go with that new wardrobe. Take a page from these little hot dogs and hop on a treadmill. Best. Cheerleaders. Ever.
Ridin’ Solo
When all you really need is to cruise with the windows down and your all-time favorite pump-up jam/breakup anthem and all your friends are at work or something, you know your main furry friend’s got you covered.
Really, there’s no shortage of ways the love of your dog will help get you through this rough time—it’s science! Dogs make us feel better, so spend as much time loving on one as you can because you will, by the way, survive. And love and be loved again.
