I am so sorry. It's the last, best thing that we can do for our furry friends, but it's not easy.
I remember reading a factual story about wolves that was written for children. The story followed a wolf family and went into great detail about each family member's role within the pack. There was even a goofball nephew that was the designated babysitter for the baby wolves when the pack went hunting. :) It made me realize that humans serve as a dog's family in just the same manner as a wolf's pack does. If dogs think of us as their family members, why wouldn't we think of them in the same way?
All I can say is, if there is an afterlife (as I hope there is,) there had better be some wagging and waving tails among my greeters.
You hurt that badly because you loved that deeply. The grief is an odd marker of the joy they brought, but it is. I have never felt such pain as losing my little furry ones. All the best to you.
One of the many reasons why I cherish the notion of the Rainbow Bridge. Many years ago, when our neighbor the vet had to put down one of our furbabies, her clinic sent us a card with "The Rainbow Bridge" poem printed on it. Each staff member had signed it, and they each added a personal note about this particular cat - his beauty (he was a Russian Blue), his intelligence, his affectionate nature - and it wasn't just baloney. They had obviously picked up on some characteristics that were uniquely HIS.
I still have the card and showed it to my neighbor the other day. She was deeply touched that I still had it.
May your precious pup greet you, one day, when it's your turn to cross the Rainbow Bridge! (I'm expecting a furry-purry onslaught when it's my turn. . .with my BFF and HER furbabies on the other side of the Bridge.) Whole lotta lovin' at that Bridge.
Take care. It's never easy to lose a cherished one.
CrispingPin Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > It’s our (very difficult) duty to take the pain > from their body and plant it in our hearts.
My parents have both passed away and they would agree with me. Losing their dogs was extremely difficult for them, too.
I look at the 2 I have now and worry. How will I ever live through it again. I always tell them they have to take me with them when they go.
I hate to say that the thing that has helped me the most in losing a dog is to get another one. You have to know you are ready for it. I decided to rescue dogs after losing my 14 year old dog some years back as then I felt like I was doing something good and then I could never regret it, but it still hasn't been easy to lose the ones I've lost since then. I have to go on antidepressants again every time and I have to go on something like Xanax for a while.
I miss his energy, his devotion, his love, his presence. I miss the daily rituals we developed, wagging tail and joyful greeting when i came home, walking at the dog park, saving treats for him at the restaurant, knowing he was there.
You are making my cry for my dog, now. I know what you mean about the little rituals. I lived alone for a while, and I remember the happiness I felt coming home to someone who was so happy to see me! I'm remembering her tonight, because I had to be home before midnight on New Year's, to comfort her through the noisy fireworks. It was the same on the Fourth of July.
Don't stop walking! The hikes without your dog won't be as fun, and you won't have him forcing you to go. I still feel close to my dog (I know she's waiting in the hereafter) and I picture her romping in the snow, and sniffing around. We would play "hide-and-seek" in the trees.
It does help to get another dog, though you don't really feel like it. I have my daughter's dog, which is a rescue. She reminds me of my other dog, and she needs me! For each different dog, there is a different love. Another New Year of fireworks, and my daughter's dog is here under my desk, shaking. Will the fireworks last all night?
I wish dogs lived as long as we do. My sympathy to you!
I read a quote once that grief is the price we pay for loving. And our lives would be SO empty without the love of our animals. They ask so little and give us SO much love. My heart goes out to you, and I send hugs across the oceans. Your life has had a wonderful gift and I hope that much more love comes your way.
((((((((evergreen)))))))) I am so sorry for your loss and do understand your intense grief.Your little pet had a good life and oceans of love because you made it that way.
I’m so sorry. Losing a pet at Christmas is especially tough. We lost our MacGregor on December 18, 2012 and it was heartbreaking. Peace be with you at this time. When you’re ready, a new pet may be just what you need. We adopted Arran a month after we lost MacGregor and he was perfect... not a substitute, but someone who needed love and a home. We still have him six years later and love him dearly... and remember MacGregor, who made it possible for us to give him a home. Sometimes I think MacGregor even sent Arran to us.
The painfulness of facing what we know is inevitable from the start. I've lost animals that were quite old and it still hurts even when you can see it coming and you try to prepare yourself.
People who aren't into pets don't understand the attachment and are often dismissive in a way that makes the grief even worse because they make you feel guilty for grieving over "just an animal."
A pet fills an unusual place in our emotional lives. They are treated and often act like children, and we react to them like they are children, yet unlike our children they do not outlive us (usually.) Losing a pet can feel like losing something very much like an infant or toddler -- something that we interact with emotionally even though it can't communicate in adult language.
It can also feel almost like losing a limb or an organ. Our animals can feel like an extension of ourselves -- especially obviously with service animals but even so with ordinary pets. Losing one can feel like losing a sense perception or something.
I've had people tell me "you can always get another cat/dog" which is true but that's like telling someone who's lost a close friend "you can always get another friend."
Losing my dogs was the worst but for some reason getting the ashes eased the pain. They were gone and it hurt so bad but I had them back in a way. I needed to know where their ashes were.
Having the ashes certainly bring a note of finality.
When one of my children's pets died in Japan, instead of ashes from the cremation, the custom there is the owner comes and takes the bones from the ashes using a set of chop sticks. Then they are placed carefully in a package to carry the remains. It is the bones rather than the ashes that are preserved. Strange custom if you aren't familiar with it. That may have caused my child culture shock more than anything else that I know of.