Hello Jan,
I am so glad you posted this. It's such a positive post and so honest. I think this is the experience of so many of us. Friends often don't help as much as we might have thought they would and it is great you have one friend who has been such a help and your lovely dogs to keep you going.
Keep on trying and time does eventually help a bit. You do sort of heal, but the scar remains and you do learn to live with it in time, but you never do stop missing them. It does get better,but what you have to accept is that that things will never be what they were, so you have to create your own new life going forward. That is hard, but it too helps.
Wishing you well.