The Loss Of A Pet

[pastafreak]

This is a lovely, short essay on grieving for a pet.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/aug/16/my-dog-was-looking-into-my-eyes-as-she-died-the-grief-of-losing-a-pet-is-real#comment-119435191

[murraymints]

awwwwww...

[pastafreak]

And some of the comments had me bawling...

[RichardSlade]

Yeah, that's never easy. When you first get a new pet, you need to bear in mind that this day will inevitably come and all you can do is hope that it's as far in the future as possible and to give the animal the best life you can.

[diddlydo]

Gawd - the English and their pets that cr** in other people's gardens and all over the footpaths.........

[Prudie]

"before falling into a howling, on-my-knees trance I didn’t emerge from for months". That so hit a chord with me as that was just how I was when I unexpectedly lost my boxer. I cried for weeks and it probably took me 5 years to get over it. I never grieved like that, even for loved parents and friends. Undoubtedly a fault in my psyche but I have loved many of my pets more deeply than humans..

[wolf63]

I don't get really emotional (I am on mood stabilisers) but I was upset when my two dogs and last cat died.

I was a bit upset when my parents died too, but not to the same degree - but by then I had left home so they were not as big a part of my life.

Our pets live with us and are a huge part of our lives. When my first dog died 1988 there was no real understanding of how we grieve over the death of an animal but these days there is much more understanding.

Animals grieve too - some people don't seem to comprehend that they have the same emotions that we do.

[pastafreak]

I still grieve for the cat we brought with us when we emigrated. I can remember the weight of him draped over my shoulders...I can remember opening the door to an unknown neighbour...I can see the box she was carrying. Poor Saki grew up in a flat...he was never road saavy.

[AuntLydia]

My cat was killed last month and it has hit me badly. It was the suddenness of it. The last time I saw her, curled up on the sofa when I went to bed, would be the last time I saw her alive. I can't bear to walk down the cat food isles in the supermarket and when I go past them I have a huge lump in my throat. She was my only companion during the day and we had our daily routines. I don't know how long this will last but its like a big heavy lump on my stomach. I won't get another cat until our planned move next year, maybe a will feel a little better with a new 'baby' in the house. Sorry I couldn't read the link I think it would have upset me too much.

[anneasquith]

No no no pasta, I'm not reading that. :-(

[pastafreak]

Anna...AL...it's rather beautiful. Short and beautifully written.