As per my blog on the 19-01-11 we had to say good bye to Dempsey, our Dachshund who was only 8.5 years old.
This is the frist time that my wife and I have had to go through this harrowing ordeal.
Family & friends were great as they knew what a huge part of our lives, that the dogs are.
Outside of that though, you do feel like you have to explain to people why you might not be in the best possible form, and when talking about it say that in the light of what is happening in the world it might seem small, so that they don’t think you are off your rocker
There are lot’s of articles available in print and online re how to deal with the passing of a dog or a family pet, like the one on our blog 08-05-2010 (Page 18)
We did look at these, and books like Over the rainbow bridge by Wendy M Tugby, and found that they did help us.
One big thing for us, was that we had the opportunity to write about Demspey and what he meant to us on our blog. That piece is out there, and is a forever tribute to a true friend. As you also know from last Sundays blog, we got a painting done that is a small tribute to the impact that Demspey our Dog had on our lives.
A piece dealing with this subject was in the Independent on the 28th March this year, and profiles a counselling service in Dublin that actually offers direct support to people trying to come to terms with the death of a dog / pet
Some of the information in the piece is detailed hereunder, and I am sure that anybody that has gone through it can relate to the same
We should ignore any ’embarrassment’ attached to mourning our dogs / pets, as the pain can linger for years
Losing a dog / pet is no less heartbreaking than losing a close friend,
Western society doesn’t really recognise human-animal friendships in the same way it recognises human friendships
Research suggests grieving for a dog / pet lasts an average of 10 months, but some people can carry around unresolved grief for years — particularly if they had to make the decision to euthanise the dog / pet.
It’s something that has affected us in huge way and Josephine has come up with an idea that we are toying with to do with this whole subject, that we may roll out on the pedigree dogs site. Stay tuned…
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