Pet Loss Support - Pet Loss Help

Pet Loss Support: Mourning Companion Animals

Pet Loss Help is devoted to supporting the grieving process of those who have lost companion animals. If this is the reason for your visit, please accept our deepest sympathy. You may feel overwhelmed, disoriented, and shocked by the sudden or anticipated loss of a precious animal companion.

The enrichment they bring to our lives and the acute agony of their death can devastate the strongest heart. You may feel your pain is unbearable and wonder how you will ever heal. But even at this very moment, the bond you had with your departed companion continues to sustain you as the exchange of soulful love never dies. But it is impossibly hard to feel anything but sorrow right now because their physical presence is absent, and all you know, all you feel, is that you want them back.

To help validate your acute reaction, please read Frequently Asked Questions about Animal Companion Loss to understand that your feelings are normal and appropriate. We mourn in proportion to the value of our loss.

If you would like to post a memorial to your beloved friend, please email susanstonelcsw@aol.com with your request or visit the Contact Page.

For individual support and/or counseling visit this page. 10% of every bereavement counseling session is donated to a no-kill shelter or animal non-profit of your choosing.

Mental health or veterinary practitioners seeking training or resources to counsel clients, set up bereavement support services, learn about secondary trauma debriefings or host related workshops at their facilities please visit these respective pages.

For guidance on treating clients encountering animal companion loss, you may order my new book Mourning Companion Animals; Guiding Clients from Loss to Legacy (Routledge, '24).

To read stories written by your fellow stewards who have shared your journey of love and loss, visit our Hall of Fame page.

To find resources to help you through the early stages of animal companion bereavement which may include telephonic support, or pet bereavement groups, please visit the Bereavement Resources pages.

Adoption options for if/when you feel ready to bring another creature into your home can be found on the When You Are Ready page - including reputable no-kill shelters in your community or state which can help heal your broken heart.