This book, LOST COMPANIONS: Reflections on the Death of Pets by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson is a wonderfully written book about the psychology of grief when we lose a pet. 

I have included some of my favorite quotes from the book: 

(When putting an animal to sleep) This is the least we owe them. It is heartbreaking, but everyone I have spoken to who has been there at the very end is glad, for their own sake, and for the sake of their loved companion, that they were there and fully present.

Losing a pet is such a complex feeling. It is a period in our life that has come to an end. 

A dog’s IQ might not be the highest, but their EQ (Emotional Intelligence) is in the stratosphere!

The emotional bond is nothing less than the one between parent and child. We do not expect to lose a child and when the animal dies, that feeling is similar.

The author Jennifer Weiner writes about when her dog died: “it felt like the world had been knocked off its orbit.” 

Losing a beloved dog is a terrible experience, not to be made light of, that can have a serious impact. But, they tell me, it is nothing like losing a child. 

Suddenly we are faced with a void. I can understand how people go into a deep depression as a result of such a loss. 

A veterinarian recounted the importance of being with the dog in their final moments: Many people find it unbearable to be present at the final moment with their dog, and they leave the room. What he sees then is that the dog frantically looks from face to face of the people present, searching for his own family, and how distressed the dog is at not finding them, and how distressed he, the vet, is by the absence of the human as well. He begs them to reconsider, even if it causes them suffering, a willingness to witness their dog’s final moments. I agree with him. We owe them this comfort in their last moments, no matter how unhappy it makes us feel. 

If you have a dog, you will most likely outlive it; to get a dog is to open yourself to profound joy and, prospectively, to equally profound sadness. 

We may not even realize it, but we confide in them. They never criticize us; they never look at us in disbelief. No human companion is as understanding, as forgiving, as eager to be in your presence. There is a unique intimacy. 

They seem to love us without any kind of boundary. 

I am sure that when people who have not lived with dogs hear from their dog-obsessed friend that the love they feel coming from their dog is greater than any other love they have ever experienced, they think they are exaggerating or wrong, or even crazy. And until you experience it, it is hard to believe that it exists. But once you do experience it, you wonder how you managed to live without it. 

Before you get a dog, you can’t quite imagine what living with one might be like; afterward, you can’t imagine living any other way. 

Your pet doesn’t know what we are doing or why- they only know that you are there, that you said it’s ok, that you love them. 

Will your animal let you know when it is time to let go? Not always. They are holding on to you as much as you are holding on to them. They don’t want you to leave them any more than you want them to leave you. So how do we know then when the time has come? The honest answer is that we don’t know. But here is the important part: neither does anyone else. 

Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal. 

Celebrate your time with your animals, and when the time comes to say good-bye, do it in your own way for as long as you want, and celebrate their lives and the gifts they have bestowed on you. 

 

Yum