ive lost family members over the years but i didnt spend every single day with them, so the feeling was different

my dog was around me literally all the time, and that "energy" is now gone, it feels like a massive missing piece now, because i dont have that dog around me anymore like i did for almost the last 2 decades

>>5109876
Maybe a week or so, but every now and again after that you'll have a passing memory of them and become sad. The pain of losing someone never really leaves you.
>also feel weird in a way that ive got a lot less responsibility in life now not having any pets so kinda feel guilty about feeling "relieved" in a way too
I had a disabled brother, hypoxia while being born, who was born when I was about 7 and died when I was about 12. There's no real good way of me describing it that doesnt make me sound like a bastard but I am kind of glad hes gone. He was essentially comatose for the 5 years he existed, there wasn't enough of a person there for him to do anything except breathe and poop. I felt bad when he died but at the same time I was happy my parents would finally pay more attention to me and my sister now that he was gone. Looking back at it now I think I miss him more for what he could have been instead of what he was. Not entirely relevant to what you said, but I think its a human experience to have a sense of relief when an emotional burden is taken off of you no matter what it was.

>>5109876
you don't

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQTeXBdPnIk

>>5109887
I understand you, anon.
>grandma gets Alzheimers, goes from entirely independent to fearful, dependent, constantly upset
>slowly forgets the faces of everyone who loves her
it's not that you're glad they're dead, really, it's that you're glad their ordeal is over.

In enough time, a few weeks, maybe a month or so, you'll grow accustomed to their absence. You'll never really get over it though. Take solace in the fact that your dog will stay with you forever, even if it hurts to carry it with you.