Irving Townsend wrote, “We who choose to surround ourselves with lives even more temporary than our own, live within a fragile circle, easily and often breached. Unable to accept its awful gaps, we still would live no other way. We cherish memory as the only certain immortality, never fully understanding the necessary plan.”
These amazing spirits, show us so well, that yesterday and tomorrow are just that, and today, this moment, is really all we have, so we better make the most of it. There are no would haves, could haves, or should haves for our dogs. Each moment is a perfect life time, filled with love and joy, and all for us.
It is said that life and death are twins, and that grief and hope walk hand in hand, and though grief is a blanket of darkness, it is followed by light, and our sorrow is embraced by comfort.
PET LOSS SUPPORT BOOKS AND RESOURCES
Jasper’s Day
by Marjorie Blain Parker, Janet Wilson
Dog Heaven
by Cynthia Rylant
Goodbye, Friend: Healing Wisdom for Anyone Who Has Ever Lost a Pet
by Gary Kowalski
For Every Dog An Angel
by Christine Davis
For Every Cat An Angel
by Christine Davis
When Your Pet Dies: A Guide to Mourning, Remembering and Healing
by Alan D. Wolfelt, PhD
Going Home: Finding Peace When Pets Die
by Jon Katz
When Shiner Died: A Children’s Book About Pet Loss
by Rebecca S. Hauder
Coping with the Loss of a Pet: A Support Guide for Pet Owners
by OVC Pet Trust
Preparing for the Loss of a Pet: A Support Guide for Pet Owners
by OVC Pet Trust
Final Moments, Spent At Home
by Darcy Matheson
Gateway Pet Cemetaries, Ontario
Amazing Dog Short Film “If I Could Talk”
Pet Loss Care Memorial Centre
Located in Victoria, British Columbia, “Pet Loss Care Memorial Centre,” offers a pet loss centre and mobile veterinarian, Dr. Julia Harrison, DVM, to assist families needing end of life services for their beloved pet.
Knowing the Right Time to Say Goodbye to a Pet
Knowing when to let our pets go is a very difficult decision. How do we know? What should we look for? Are there behaviours we will notice? “Knowing the Right Time to Say Goodbye to a Pet” provides a good overview about how to help US make end-of-life decisions on behalf of our pets. Dr. Alice Villaboos is a nationally recognized veterinary oncologist, who has dedicated her career to helping pet owners work through end-of-life issues, focusing on quality of life. Please take a look at this article:
How far should you go to save an animal?
Stories of the hard ethical choices pet owners and veterinarians confront, with Ontario Veterinary College professor Dr. Shane Bateman, a clinician in the “Emergency and Critical Care service at OVC’s Health Sciences Centre . . .
The Canadian Centre for Pet Loss Bereavement (CCPLB)
Honouring the kinship between pets and their humans . . .
“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.” (Anatole France)
Phone Support for bereaved pet owners:
TOLL FREE to Angie Rupra, R.S.W, through our Referral Partners:
Pet Vet Hospitals: 1-866-226-8079 Ext. 55
Training Programs for animal lovers and veterinary clinics in British Columbia: Tel. 1-778-319-7387
By Email:
General inquiries: info@petlosssupport.ca
Angie Rupra: angie.rupra@petvethospitals.ca
Shiri R. Joshua, M.A.
1054 Centre Streetont, Suite 377
Thornhill, Ontario
416-571-1175
As a long time pet owner herself, and after experiencing the loss of one of her rabbits, Zoe, Shiri R. Joshua, M.A. (Couns. Psych), OACCPP resolved to combine her clinical training in Counselling Psychology to enhance her expertise in Animal Assisted Therapy, and Pet Loss Bereavement Counselling. She is a current member of the Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement. Shiri’s training and professional background, as the director and founder of Mental Health Resources Canada (MHRC), allowed her to offer her services to the community of Canadian pet owners. Her work has been featured n a variety of media, including, the “All About Pets Show”, “Dogs, Dogs, Dogs!”, “The Toronto Sun”, and “The National Post.” Shiri’s work includes facilitation of Pet Loss Bereavement groups, leading professional seminars across Canada, individual counselling, and house calls as needed.
UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN PET MEMORIAL CENTRE
Until We Meet Again offers both private and communal cremation as well as viewing and visitation services so that you can choose the best way to honour your pet as you say goodbye.
Pet Loss Counselling with Helen Goldberg
