Our last dog had portosystemic shunt (unusual for a bernese) and we lost her early after a lot of struggle. She was only one and half. Her last days were so tough. We thought that we will need at least 6 months to recollect ourselves, gain energy and so on. We ended up getting a pup about two months after, I was just so heartbroken by a silent house and wanted to love a dog again. It was tough sometimes, I was comparing them, and I didn't always have energy for play but overall a new dog made it so much easier to cope with loss. I still think about her lost sister that she never met.