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Finding support after pet bereavement
Anyone who has been blessed with a pet knows they are so much more than ‘just’ a pet. They are your friend and your loved one, always able to make you smile and brighten up a tough day.
We understand that losing them is truly heartbreaking.
Grief is a natural response to loss, but there is no textbook for how to grieve for your pet. The experience is different for everyone. Making the decision to euthanise your pet is never easy, but you may be at peace with the decision to let them go. For others, your pet may have been your only company, you may be wondering if you made the wrong decision, or they may have passed away suddenly and traumatically. Their absence may feel like an unbearable physical pain.
It’s a cliche but time really is a great healer and the pain of your loss will usually ease as the weeks pass. However, this is not always the case and if you feel you need it, there is support available to help you deal with your loss.
The Blue Cross is a charity that helps pets and owners in many ways including their wonderful pet bereavement service. Support is available to suit everyone — with telephone and email options, online chats and social media groups. Trained volunteers are ready and waiting to help.
Set up by a vet following the loss of his beloved cat ‘Ralph’, the Ralph Site is a not-for-profit website providing free support to owners following the loss of their pet. From private chat forums to comforting poems and everything in between, the website provides support from others going through the same heartbreak.
Counselling can help you work through your grief, but finding the right counsellor is not always easy. The APBC launched in 2024 and provides a way of regulating those who offer a pet bereavement counselling service. This ensures pet owners have access to properly qualified counsellors and high quality expertise.
A ‘find a counsellor’ service is available, alongside advice for pet owners navigating euthanasia and pet loss.
The Lap of Love is an American veterinary hospice and home euthanasia service, with wonderful pet loss and grief support resources on their website. Do take a look.
The APLB was set up by an American educational psychologist after the loss of his beloved dog. Taking human loss as a model, he has developed a framework unique for pet loss. It has blossomed into a non-profit organisation, with lots of information and support available through their website.