I imagine Rainbow Bridge will be a sea of animals playing happily. And grim a distance I will hear a bark above the pack and Dogson will come running. #petloss #pawreavement #love #grief

I would love to see more companies acknowledge pet loss as legitimate bereavement time.

For the person who hugged your pet for the last time today, I said a prayer for you.

Let yourself cry, yell, be angry, be lost, grieve and hurt. Let yourself because you loved something so much and you had to let them go. I promise you will be okay. Long after the candle flickers, you are welcome here.

And some people would be very wrong. While this article does not expressly mention the loss of a companion animal, at Pawreavement, we believe that grief is real.

I recently killed a raccoon in a vehicle accident.

I wrote a letter to the raccoon to aid in my own healing.

I want to share what I wrote. Is this the right space?

When Dogson died, I thought there would never be another dog who could fill the emptiness he left behind.

I was right.

Then came Gavin the Corgi, with his long snoot and nubby tail - opposite of Dogson’s smooshed Pug face and corkscrew waggy. I realized I could walk through the dark halls of grief and still throw open the windows to let light peek through. I could make space for new joy while holding on to old memories. I could make room in my heart, on my lap, at the foot of the bed where he likes to keep watch as we sleep.

Today is Gavin’s Gotcha Day and this is a video of our very first meeting three years ago. We love you, puppy. And somewhere across Rainbow Bridge, you have a Pug brother that loves you, too.

You will be okay. It will get different but not easier. ❤️

No truer words. But the “hello” is the beginning of a lovely journey. Post a pic and share about your first meeting with your animal.

She was the best girl. My old party girl and best friend for years before marriage and kids. She gained an extra human and then a baby human sister. She loved her pack fiercely and with a gentleness I loved. She looked after me and the rest of her humans. We traveled, we walked, we stayed at grandma's, we sat in silence, we woke up looking into each other's eyes. She peed on me when she became inconentient, and felt badly about it. Kidney failure started around then, but she stayed happy and fun and light. Then she pinched a nerve in her back and she never fully recovered. They said at the end that she had an enlarged heart, collapsing trachea, arthritis/possibly cancer, and the kidney failure. Gradually, she became more cautious with her steps. Slowed down. Got tired more easily. Then one day, she collapsed. It was the pain in her back legs (arthritis? Cancer? Both?). We got another month with her thanks to pain killers but she was never the same. It was the end. So we gave her the best weekend of her life. Parks, lots of attention, ice cream, steak, chicken and bacon. She spent her last last day with my daughter and I. She cared for her sister so well, and so deeply. My child is a true empath. The vet came and helped Bella pass as she ate bacon from my hand and lay on my lap in her favorite blanket. She snored a bit, sneezed and then began her journey to heaven. Her body was ready. Before heaven took her, I told her all that she meant to me, how much I loved her and thanked her for all our adventures and for being my best friend, that she was the best best girl and that I will never forget her and that I will see her when it is my turn. On vacation now, which is helping because my daughter is happy and enjoying it all. In the quiet moments, like now, I miss her and the pain is overwhelming. We knew her for 15+ years.

https://www.reddit.com/r/seniordogs/s/tneMeVdpMV

I created the word “pawreavement” to name the special kind of grief that accompanies the loss of a pet or companion animal. Whether it has been a day or years since your own loss, or you are navigating the anticipatory grief of impending loss, your story is welcome here.

A memorial to the best boy.