Evan Sowards and his girlfriend, Sarah Dinh, always loved when their puppy, Titus. They called it his “donut” pose, and often took pictures. After Titus passed away, Sowards, still missing his puppy so much, adopted another dog, Milo.
One day, while working in the bedroom, Sowards felt Dinh go quiet — she tapped on his shoulder, motioning for him to turn around. There on the bed was Milo, and he was in the exact same spot and position where Titus had slept so many times before.
I just immediately broke down,” Sowards told the shelter. “Because it was him. It just felt like the universe was telling me he was still with me.”
During their 13 years together, Sowards and Titus developed a unique bond. Sowards was only 19 when he adopted Titus, and while so much in his life changed over the years, Titus was a constant friend.
“Titus and I were both puppies when I got him,” Sowards said. “We grew up together. He taught me how to be responsible. He taught me what being loved unconditionally was. Titus changed my life.”
When Titus passed away, Sowards battled with the idea of having to replace him. Sowards decided he couldn’t adopt a dog who looked like Titus ,that would be too hard. He started looking for black and gray dogs, any color but brown.
And yet, when Dinh showed Sowards a picture of a little brown dog on The Labelle Foundation of Los Angeles’ Instagram page, Sowards immediately knew it was meant to be. “Every worry and thought completely went out the window,” Sowards said. “I just told Sarah, say the word I’ll apply right now.”
Sowards immediately began recognizing similarities between Milo and Titus. Titus used to run up to Sowards right when he arrived home from work, and now Milo does too.
Milo loves to lay right next to Dinh as she does homework, just like Titus did. Sowards believes, in some larger way, Milo and Titus are connected.
“I’m a technical recruiter, so I told my coworkers that I think Titus referred Milo for the position,” Sowards said. “And I’m just thankful. Because I’ve missed Titus a lot since he’s passed and it was just really, nice to be reminded of him again.”
While Milo will never be the exact same dog that Titus was, it’s clear that he’s already great at providing the same kind of love and support to Sowards. And perhaps somewhere, Titus is pulling some strings, making sure his best friend is happy.
