Miranda Cosgrove: 'I miss my dog'

Actress Miranda Cosgrove has opened up about the death of her beloved dog, revealing the pooch had been a huge part of her young life.

Poodle Pearl was 14 when she died of kidney failure earlier this month (Oct12) and the iCarly and School of Rock star, 19, admits life without her best friend is awful.

Currently studying at the University of Southern California, Cosgrove says, "I never had anything die in my life before except a hamster. It's definitely been hard."

And the former child star tells People magazine, "She was a part of our family and because I was an only child, she was a really big part of my life. Every time I look back on a memory, she was there... I miss her so much."

Cosgrove was visiting her parents in Downey, California when Pearl fell ill.

She recalls, "My mom and I took her to the vet and they examined her. They said her heartbeat was really strong and everything was fine, but she was acting tired and kind of funny.

"They took some blood and called us the next day and said she had kidney failure. She wasn't herself. She was so tired and kind of confused."

Losing Pearl has hit the actress really hard because she was planning to move into her first home with her dog: "I live in an area where everybody walks their dogs. I was so excited to have her move in with me."