Pet Bereavement - I’m trying to comfort someone who’s grieving their pet
Pet loss and bereavement can be very difficult. Friends and family of those experiencing pet loss don’t know what to say or how to be empathetic while respecting their grief.
Pet Bereavement - this hurt hits different
There’s a moment after losing a pet where the world feels oddly still. The routines you never thought much about — the morning stretch beside your bed, the excited tap-tap-tap of paws on the floor, the way they’d sit beside you, their head on your lap — vanish overnight. And you’re left standing in the quiet, trying to understand how life keeps going when yours feels like it tilted off its axis.
Pet Loss - 🐾 Where the Rainbow Bridge Comes From — And Why It Means So Much to Us
If you’ve ever loved a pet and had to say goodbye, chances are someone has shared “The Rainbow Bridge” with you — a poem about a peaceful meadow where our pets wait for us, happy, healthy, and whole. It’s one of the most widely shared comforts in the world of pet loss. But most people don’t know where it actually came from.
Pet Loss - Resources
Canadian Pet-Loss Resources
Ontario Pet Loss (Ontario)
A support group offering grief coaching, peer-connection and counselling for those who have lost beloved companion animals. (Ontario Pet Loss)OVC Pet Trust at Ontario Veterinary College (University of Guelph)
Offers grief counselling (short-term: phone/virtual) for those grieving the loss of a companion animal, plus a list of other Canadian resources. (OVC Pet Trust)Lifting Stars (British Columbia)
Provides pet-grief support, a memorial centre, downloadable PDFs (“Coping with the Loss of a Companion Animal”) and a helpline. (liftingstars.ca)