Pet Loss Grief - Providing Help For Children Dealing With Loss Of A Pet

The addition of a pet in the family is a decision that parents make, usually to make their children happy. For many kids, pets are not just playmates. They are creatures that bring joy to them, teach them the value of responsibility, relieve their stress, and as a whole make good friends. Taking this into consideration, it is expected that pets at home are more attached to the kids who spend a lot of time with them. Thus, with the passing away of the pet, children are bound to go through pet loss grief. As a parent, it might be hard to think how you can help your kids move on from the loss. This is because you, yourself, are finding it hard to cope up. But since you are the adult, you have to take it upon yourself to give your kids some extra help.

In this pursuit, it is imperative for parents to keep in mind that patience is important. Children have the tendency to bring up the topic repeatedly so be patient. Apart from this, you have to give your children the chance to deal with their grief. Let them express their grief openly and let them see you express your grief as well. Always make sure that when you talk about what happened, you do it with all honesty. Also similar to what Christian counseling experts would tell you, talk about death and grief in terms children understand. Don't use words like God took the pet or the pet is just asleep. These can result to kids developing fears like fear that God will take them or their loved ones and fear of sleeping. It is also recommended to involve your children to activities pertaining to the loss. Give them permission to participate in the burial service. Allow them to contribute ideas to how the memorial service should be done. In the event that a child refuses to join the service, give him that liberty as well.

Also, part of your pursuit to help your child recover is to educate him about the permanency of death. Further don't rush into buying another pet to replace the lost one. This can make a child feel disloyal and give him the wrong impression that grief can be overcome simply by buying a replacement for what was lost. Even while pet loss grief cannot be considered as serious as substance abuse counseling, it has to be done with caution too. Trying to educate yourself on how you can do it well can contribute a lot to your recovery and your kids' recovery, most importantly. Practice patience and remember to hug and reassure your kids always.