Dogs get very bonded with their people, they never forget and they do mourn when you’re no longer there. That’s why dumping them is so very cruel. If you can’t keep your dog, try very hard to ease the transition, find them a good loving home and take them for visits, slowly backing away as they form new attachments. Older dogs in particular might go into a tailspin, fall into depression and die if they’re just dumped.
“Dogs get very bonded with their people...”
My experience says they also get very bonded with their places. With a 9-year-old Australian cattle dog, we moved from a tract home lot to a 1-acre development that had no fences to restrict the dog’s sight lines. Initially, she was very timid about the larger space even though she had been in larger spaces previously: dog park, rural pasture, etc. She eventually adapted and came to really like the ability to roam further and play chase the ball across a larger yard. She lived about another 4-1/2 years after the move and was euthanized after a short decline due to kidney disease. Still miss her...