Bringing a pet into your home can transform your life. Spending time and caring for your pet integrates into your daily routine. For most, your newfound furry friend slowly (or quickly) turns into part of the family and steals a big chunk of your heart. Inevitably, our pets do grow old and pass away. This part of pet ownership is nothing that you can ever truly be prepared for.

After a significant loss such as a pet, grief begins. The loss of a pet can bring up varying emotions. Pain, sorrow, sadness, anger, and even sometimes feelings of shame for experiencing these emotions over “just a pet”. These emotions are natural during the grieving process, and it is important to take the time to take care of yourself in this. The following are some helpful ways to assist you through your grieving process. Remember, everyone experiences grief and loss differently so some of these may not feel necessary to you and that is okay! Make sure you are doing what feels is right for your own grief because with grief there is never a “right” or “wrong” way.

1.     Validate your emotions and experience: Sometimes, difficult emotions that are experienced throughout a grieving process can feel overwhelming and cause one to attempt to ignore or invalidate them. For some, the feelings of “it was just a pet, I shouldn’t feel this way” encroaches and inhibits the overall experience. Grief is a process that takes varied amounts of time for everyone, one of the most important steps is to allow yourself to go through this process. Take the time to recognize that your emotions are valid and that you are allowed to feel them. It is important to face these emotions and be patient with yourself.

2.     Memorialize: Take the time to memorialize your furry friend in a way that feels appropriate and natural for you. There are many ways to memorialize your pet. For some, they feel as though they want to have a type of service or physical memorial with family members or even friends; during this process it can be helpful to share fun memories and kind words. For others, this memorial may be more of a physical token or ritual. Some examples include framing your favorite picture, making a scrapbook, writing fond down fond memories, keeping a box of their belongings, displaying their pet’s ashes in an urn, or taking the ashes and placing them into jewelry.

3.     Seek support and comfort: You do not have to be alone in your grieving process. Surround yourself with loved ones that you find support and comfort in. This can be done over the phone or in physically meeting up to spend time with one another. Having the extra support and comfort can be helpful in expressing and coping with your feelings. Another way to seek support is through therapeutic counseling. If you feel that you are struggling with this loss, this is something that you can process and express to a licensed professional.

4.     Engage in hobbies/activities that you enjoy: Continue to do the things that you love and bring you joy. Make sure that you are taking time out of your day to engage in a hobby or an activity to help in bringing your own joy into each day.

For further support around grieving the loss of a furry friend, click here.