The relationship that we have with our faithful friends is one that is sometimes not understood by people if they do not have pets themselves. None-the-less, the feelings of grief and loss we experience are very real and should not be belittled or brushed under the carpet; instead they should be accepted as a natural response to loss.

Common feelings
It is important to understand that there is no order or time-line to feelings of loss.

Common feelings include:

• Anger – this can be towards another person, yourself or maybe your vet.
• Guilt – you may start replaying events and believing that if you’d done something differently your pet would still be with you
• Shock – maybe your pet loss was sudden and unexpected and the result of an accident meaning you had no chance to say good-bye
• Denial – if you still have your pet with you but you have been advised it is time to say good-bye, you may be searching for other options so that you don’t have to deal with the decision.
• Depression – the loss of a pet brings feelings of overwhelming sadness in the following days, but when this is prolonged and impacts on your day to day life, then you should seek help.

Excerpt from Compassion Understood