Pet Bereavement Counseling
offered by Judith C. Stutts, PhD

About Pet Bereavement

If you are grieving over an animal that is sick, one that is dying, or one that has died, YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Some people grieve more over the loss of an animal than the loss of a human. Grief over the loss of an animal may be even more difficult because many people do not understand or show sympathy for those who openly mourn the loss of an animal that had special meaning for them. Although research has shown that as many as 99% of animal owners in the United states think of their pets as "one of the family", only the fortunate few may have family and friends who are as loving and empathic as when a human family member dies. Countless others have to deal with human insensitivity, and even ridi­cule in addition to animal sickness and death. Many of my clients tell me that they grieve alone because they have no one to talk to, and some are afraid that people will think that they are stupid or crazy. These people suffer in silence.  They go through the grief stages alone, even though IT IS NORMAL TO BE SAD AND SHOW GRIEF over the loss of an animal. 

As with human grief, someone grieving over the antici­pated loss or actual loss of a special animal may experience "DENIAL" that the animal is sick, dying, or dead.  If an animal is dying, the owner, or caregiver, may "BARGAIN", sometimes offering anything and every­thing if the life of the animal will just be spared.

 Some people may experience "ANGER" at themselves, the veterinarian, or family and friends. Many compassionate pet owners feel guilty that they "did something wrong", or that they did not do enough or tried to do too much to prolong the animal's life. Sometimes the sadness may seem overwhelming with little or no emotional support.  It may be helpful to talk to a veterinarian or a pro­fessional counselor in order to go through the grief process with emotional support. It is very important to seek out other people who understand human-animal relationship issues, and to give ourselves permission to say "good-bye" in our own way to an animal that shared our life and gave it special meaning. 

To contact Dr. Stutts, you can call her at 336-625-1400, or e-mail at jcstuttsphd@petloss.org