Do pets grieve?

Well if we base our opinion on their behavior, yes, they can grieve.

If you recently experienced the death of a pet like I have, and have a surviving companion pet that has:
Stopped eating or is eating less,
Become aloof,
Become lethargic,
Become clingy and more affectionate,
Lost interest in her/his favorite activities,
Soiled in the house (and s/he’s house-trained),
Sat at a window for days watching for her/his companion to return or searched room-to-room looking for the deceased friend,
Become more vocal than normal or howls or whines or has become quiet,
Started sleeping somewhere different,
Changed the amount of sleep s/he gets, 

… Your pet is probably grieving.

What are you to do?

When our cat, Oreo, died last week, our other cat, Pumpkin, became quite vocal and roamed the house and has been nudging us for affection and attention ever since. So we are showering Pumpkin with lots of love, playing with her whenever we can and leaving our bedroom door open at night so she can have the companionship she’s missing from her friend. Right up to the end of Oreo’s life, Pumpkin was grooming Oreo and sleeping beside her to generate heat for her. Never one to be so demonstrative with all the members of our household, Pumpkin now loves to curl up on everyone’s lap.

So yes, give your surviving pet more attention and affection and try to engage her in her favorite activities.

You can also hide toys and treats in her favorite spots for her to find during the day.

And take her for more outings if she enjoys going out.

Also, it helps to have a set routine for feeding, grooming and playtimes.

I know some people who have let the surviving pet sniff and even snuggle with the dead pet in order to say goodbye before burial or cremation.

And others have cut off some hair from the deceased pet’s body to show to the companion, and verbally explained the death—your animal may not understand the words but it will feel the intonations and feelings behind the words.

And yes, cats can mourn the loss of a dog and a dog can mourn the death of a cat!

Melanie Hack
Author of Who Killed My Sister, My friend
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