Coping With Your Dog's Death

If this is the first time you've lost a dog, you've probably been blindsided by just how much it hurts when your dog dies. It's easy when it hasn't happened yet; you may be thinking that it won't affect you very much, you'll be able to go on with little disruption to your days.

Until it does happen.

And if you haven't mentally prepared yourself, you could be staggering under the weight of unexpected grief. If that is where you find yourself, these steps should help you to get through the days.

• Go Ahead and Cry
  Express your grief. Bottling it up inside you will only make it harder to deal with. No matter how old you are.
• Avoid Certain People
  If somebody won't respect your feelings, then it's a matter of personal safety for you to avoid spending any amount of time in their presence. This includes anybody that might be tempted to tell you that "it was just a dog."
• Don't Try To Replace Him
  Give yourself time to recover from the loss of your dog before rushing out to replace him. You can't replace him, no matter how similar a new dog might be, and if you try you are only setting yourself up for more heartache when the new dog fails to measure up.
• Talk About Him
  A lot. Tell stories to your friends that will listen. Write out a tribute to his memory, and keep his picture with you. Trying to pretend he didn't exist won't help you, in fact it will only make you feel worse.
• Get Another Pet
  Keeping in mind that you can not replace the dog that died, you may find that it helps you to open your home and heart to another pet, be it a dog or some other species. Some people just need to have a pet, and if you don't make the mistake of getting another dog just like the one you lost, you my find that another pet will help overcome your grief.

While doing these things won't take away the pain, they will help you deal with your grief, so that you can go on to cherish the memories of your beloved dog.

More About Dealing With Your Dog's Death

• When to Euthanize
• What is Euthanasia?
• What to Do When Your Dog Dies at Home
• Dealing With Your Dog's Remains
• Dogs That Grieve