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Since the beginning of time, human beings have created strong relationships with their pet companions. Some of those relationships last short periods of time. Others last a lifetime. Many of these relationships create strong and wide trust boundaries and few require primarily respect and territorial boundaries. However, two things we can be assured will happen: (1) some level of emotional tie will be developed, and (2) one of the parties involved on these relationships will eventually deal with death and loss. This article provides some insight on how to deal with the loss of a pet.

Reasons Behind the Creation of Relationships with Pets

Anthrozoology is a term commonly used when scientists consider the interaction between humans and non-human animals. For years, both pet owners as well as those within the scientific community have been fascinated by the reasons behind the creation of relationships with pets companions.

In the book, “The Animals Among Us”, Biologist and Author John Bradshaw provides additional details regarding the practice of bringing young animals into the family nucleus and raising them. He explains that this practice has happened over hundreds of years among humans in all sorts of geographies and cultures.

Bradshaw Argues that intimacy with humans has resulted in domestication of species over the years, which in turns has resulted in humans keeping animals based of the benefits of the relationships. Among those benefits mentioned is the “status symbols” animals provide when displayed in public.

Stroking a pet has been shown to elevate the circulating levels of oxytocin, a hormone in both humans and animals best known as the “feel-good” hormone*. Even in today’s society, the roles of pets in people’s lives
have expanded to key areas such as therapy animals, assistants to blind or disabled friends and family members and companions to those isolated.

The perceived and experienced health, social and personal benefits resulting from the interactions with our pets, are among the highlighted reasons behind the creation of relationships with pets.

Process of Dealing with Pet Loss

The death of our pets is a natural part of the circle of life. However, the process of dealing with a pet loss is not easy. Before these lovely creatures become our pets, they are born and sometime after that event it seems as if life brings them to our lives. We make them part of as many areas of our lives as we can, enjoying every outcome that the relationship produces. But eventually, everything in life expires and we are separated from those relationships with our pets. At that point, many of us are left with figuring out how to deal with the loss of a pet, our beloved pet.

Being knowledgeable on the process of dealing with a pet loss can further create a healthy environment for both, us as the owner and our companion animals. According to an article published on Scientific American Magazine on May 2018, Psychologist Guy Winch warns us about “Why We Need to Take Pet Loss Seriously”. This article explains the process of handling grief after a pet’s loss. Through his research and scientific studies, Mr. Winch provides insight on how people can have quicker and more complete psychological recovery.

Factors such as self-recognition of the loss and properly handling the disruption of daily activities and routines are key to our recovery. In addition, it is critical to find the right support system from people we know would understand the situation. Grief resulting from the loss of a beloved pet can be as intense and lasting as that of a person in our lives. However, Mr. Winch studies suggests that social and community support mechanisms for mourning the loss of a pet are rarely found. This creates a problem for us as we face such painful situations.

Dr. Winch offers additional details on handling the emotional pain after a pet’s loss on his book, “How to Fix a Broken Heart”.

Coping with Pet Loss

Finding ways of coping with pet loss is important to people’s health and well-being. However, there is no secret formula to properly cope. The reason for the difficulty in finding a “one size fits all” coping mechanism is that the ways in which people grief and cope are as diverse as the amount of people dealing with the situations.

While grieving, a person may completely deny any internal turmoil, pain or sorrow. However, this denial response could be a mechanism to demonstrate a false sense of control or strength. This conflict within can then become evident through outburst of anger, guilt and frustration towards those in their surroundings. Without the appropriate channels of addressing the grieving process, people dealing with this situation can become isolated. In turn, isolation increases the risk of falling into other serious conditions such as depression.

Prepare, Seek Support and Honor

Here a 5 Steps which can help you prepare and move you towards coping after your pet’s loss:

1. Consistently consider the reality of life expiration or transition. It is important to enjoy the time spent with your pet. Cherish every memory making moment the interaction may offer. It is equally important to remember that life is fragile. Fully embrace your pet’s life and plan on honoring them when they are no longer around.
2. Be financially prepared to support your pets needs. Providing for a pet basic needs, can be financially challenging even when it is done lovingly. But when our pets mature, additional medical attention will likely be needed. This situation can become financially stressful for the care giver. Carefully consider ways that can provide financially stability during your pets later years. Diligence on this area can will create an environment in which comfort can be provided during your pet’s challenging times.
3. Accept the grieving process and allow yourself to express your feelings. This step is critical to a prompt and healthy recovery for each individual involved. Not doing so, may add risks to your life which may affect your state of mind and health.
4. Seek social or family support. Finding the appropriate support system could drastically mitigate the impact of the grieving process on our lives. Each individual should carefully consider if the available suppport system fits their situation.
5. Honor your pet’s memory by celebrating their life. There are a variety of services, programs and products which facilitate the process of honoring the memory of our beloved pets. When ready, this step can bring the appropriate level of closure to the relationship that just transitioned. It can also provide the ability to honor your pet’s memory by celebrating their life. Memorial ceremonies and fundraisers are examples of common services available today. In addition, there is a wide range of product offerings which gracefully facilitate the celebration of our pets. Let’s choose to permanently enjoy the interactions and memories of our beloved pets.

More Information

For more information on how to deal with the loss of a pet or finding the appropriate support during this situation, click on the desired category located on the “Categories” list on the right sidebar of this page. We continuously update our website to provide the information needed during the process of preparing for, dealing with and transitioning from a pet loss.

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Serenity Details would love to hear from you. Please leave your questions, feedback or comments below. We are looking forward to serving you. Let’s join in honoring and celebrating your pet’s life.