Some people may think that my love for Leo was too deep for the love of a dog. Often times, before my loss, I worried about the grief I would suffer when it was time for Leo to cross the Rainbow Bridge. A human's life span is, of course, significantly longer than the life of a dog. Because of my personal circumstances and past, my love for Leo was very much like a mother's love for an infant. Leo was my baby, and I have discovered that many people also love their dogs as baby surrogates.
Dogs are like babies when it comes to the unconditional aspect of love.
Mother Nature created an increasingly conditional aspect of love between a parent and child as they grow, so that the eventual separation of parent and child can occur, and new families can be formed. This separation and eventual distance does not occur with people and their pets. I am not making this point and observation about people and pets to in any way invalidate the life of a child, or the pain a parent experiences with a child's loss. I feel that love should not have to be compared, or justified. Love is love, and I loved Leo.