Loss of a pet healing starts with remembering
Everyone’s life journey is different, and nowhere is that truer than when it comes to the cycles of loss and healing that we all experience at the loss of a pet.
In the early days after we lose a precious pet and companion, grief may make it difficult to remember the good times, the laughter, and the happy memories you shared. Honoring the loss of your pet with its own web page can be a very effective step in your healing journey. Choose to recall the happiest memories, the brightest images, and the special bond you had together, preserved in digital form for you to draw upon whenever you want.
We’ve all learned how our animal companions rapidly become part of the family, with their own little habits, their likes and dislikes, their loyalty, their best characteristics, and their (sometimes ever-so-slightly annoying) little quirks. Whenever a new pet joins our clan, we know that our time together is limited, and we need to cherish every moment. Coping with the loss of a pet is one of those life experiences that we are all likely to face, and healing from it takes time and care.
With the help of your pet's own web page
Setting up a dedicated web page in memory of your pet can be a major milestone on your healing journey. Think of it as a memorial in a very accessible Garden of Remembrance. You could incorporate a poem, a memory or series of memories, details of their little habits, how you first met, how you adopted them (or they adopted you), photographs or pictures. You can also post location details to the place where you finally said goodbye to one another.
Life doesn’t move in a straight line, and neither does the grief. When we face the loss of a pet, our cycle of grieving and healing is unique to us. While the grieving cycle is different for everyone, at some point most of us will experience at least some of the typical five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and, ultimately, acceptance.
In time, we reach a point where, in addition to the sense of loss, we can remember our human relatives who have passed on with affection and amusement. In the same way, setting up a virtual website for a canine companion, feline friend, sweet bunny, or clever rodent or bird, can help us share our memories, honor the animal’s spirit, and progress that little bit further on our healing path after the loss of a pet.
Remembering the good times
You may want your pet’s web page to remind you of a particular time in your life. Their arrival may have coincided with a wedding, a special Christmas, a significant birthday, a child going to college, or high school, graduating or getting married, or the birth of a new grandchild.
If your animal companion has been a therapy animal, it allows not just you, as the carer, to remember the animal, but also all those that the animal has helped in his or her own journey. If your pet came to you as a rescue animal, remembering them with a website is a particularly healing action.
We don’t own our pets. They are ours to care for, to love, to cherish for a while: and then we give them back. If you’ve had to let them cross the rainbow bridge rather sooner than you would have liked, due to illness, that can be particularly hard; but be glad that you’ve given them a happy life. Just because you’ve accepted the reality of their crossing over the rainbow bridge doesn’t mean you’re forgetting, or dishonoring the memory of your pet: quite the opposite, in fact.
Think about the images that mean the most to you: a sprightly new kitten, just learning to trust and play; a puppy, enjoying rolling in the sand or the mud or the edge of the waves for the first time; a clever guinea pig or rodent exploring their cave and new toys; or a rescue animal, learning to trust you as you both come to understand that, now, you are their world. How would you describe your pet: were they mischievous, placid, ever so slightly vain of their glossy coats and a bit of a poser in front of the camera?
Did they have any quirky little habits - like rattling the door handle when they wanted to come in, despite having a perfectly good cat flap or pet entrance? What did they like to eat and drink best and how did they tell you when they were hungry, happy or sad, or wanted to play? What was their favorite toy? Where did they like to sleep? Did they comfort you when you were a little down or under the weather? And most important of all, what did they do to make you laugh or smile when they were near you? Accept the loss of your pet, but recall with joy the walks, the times you played in the yard together, the tummy tickles, the good food, and the company.
Their love is always with you
Your dedicated web page to help you heal from the loss of a pet offers the online equivalent of a candlelit in memoriam at the veterinarian’s – except it lasts forever. You can access and enjoy your pet’s memory at any time, on your computer, your tablet, or your Smartphone. You can choose to keep your page private or share your pet’s life with others. They may be gone, but they’ll live in your mind’s eye, and in your heart, forever. They will never be forgotten; you will always be able to draw close to them again every time you visit their little memorial page.