Have you ever loved or been loved by a pet? Have you ever lost a pet? If so, it was likely a big loss.

For several years, I served as a pet loss counselor at the Humane Society. I have never seen so many tears before or since. And I’m not surprised: pets give so much to us, especially, the unconditional love we so need.

Right now, we are in the midst of Shelter in Place with COVID and for many of us, everything can be a bit harder, including pet loss. I thought it would be a good time to talk to the best person I know when it comes to pet loss, my mentor, Dr. Betty Carmack. Betty is Professor Emerita at the University of San Francisco School of Nursing, who has worked with pet loss since 1982. She initiated and led the monthly pet loss support groups at the SF/SPCA from 1982 to 2015. In addition to working with individuals grieving the death of their companion animals, she has worked with the staff of humane societies, veterinary hospitals and animal care organizations.   She has authored articles in both the professional and lay literature, presented at numerous professional conferences, and engaged in research related to pet loss. She is the author of the book Grieving the Death of a Pet.

Her work was inspired by the accidental death of her beloved dog, Rocky, in 1979, and her recognition of the need to have support available to those struggling with the loss of their beloved animal companions.  

Deciding when to put a pet down can be an incredibly hard and painful decision. In the event that you have an ailing pet and need help in assessing if it is time to consider saying goodbye to your pet, here is the link for the Quality of Life Questionnaire by Dr. Alice Villalobos,: https://www.aplb.org/resources/quality-of-life_scale.html Book Link: https://amzn.to/3N70Fxi This is an affiliate link. It will provide me with a small commission on purchases made through it and help the podcast (but it won’t affect the price you pay).