Dealing with Grief and Loss of a Beloved Pet

This week I had to sadly let go of my best-friend-cat Sasha, the second time as a “responsible adult” and pet owner I’ve had to make one of the hardest decisions we ever face as animal owners or carers. It’s so incredibly sad to have to let go of such innocence, but it got me thinking about how much we learn from our furry friends and the process of grief when we have to part.

Animals can have a huge impact on our growth. Even during some of the mountainous challenges we face in life, they teach us about unconditional love and loyalty.  Sasha had been in my life since I was 23 and he had certainly seen me through some dramas, and of course many happy times! We were always very connected and I felt completely in tune with him. Over the years he taught me about how humans can connect in more ways than just through words. Connection with an animal can be a powerfully ethereal experience through our intuition and feeling. When you have connected with your pet or an animal on a very deep level there are no other words to describe that warm heart energy, pulling you both together.

When I let go of Sasha, in amongst the sobbing, I found myself reflecting back on all the changes and transformations we had been through as a team. It got me thinking about how animals represent such pivotal timelines in our lives. When they leave it can be as though a new chapter has arrived and a chance to reflect on every personal challenge and situation that has been overcome. A time to really celebrate how far you’ve come and grown as a person. And our beloved pets have an important part to play in this growth. There is much to learn from the feelings and emotions animals trigger in us. Unconditional love is within all of us, any parent or animal lover has felt it and children who struggle to connect with humans can often connect more easily with animals.

Overcoming Grief

Grief is a process that happens across many areas of our life, whether it’s through ending relationships, losing a dearly loved family member or animal. The emotion of grief is an energy felt through the body and although we may have grieved in some way before, it is important to allow this process to naturally unfold. Endings are a natural cycle of life, but any suppressed emotion could just make letting go next time a little harder.

Here are some ways that could help you move through the grieving process, grief is just that – a process of emotion to be released and it’s different for each of us.

1. Write down or reflect on how much transformation you have achieved as a person since your beloved furry friend had been by your side. Where were you when they came into your life and how does that compare to where to where you are now?
2. What did your pet teach you? Perhaps they taught you to open your heart, become a more caring person or taught you about responsibility.
3. Has your pet encouraged you to be a little more open with your emotions or softened your personality in some way?
4. Did they teach you about boundaries and did they reflect anything back at you?
5. Is there any grief coming up from other times in your life? Did you fully process this emotion or did you push it away?
6. Magnets are a wonderful way to calm the mind down during times of grief, as you can see Sasha loved being on the magnets because animals know intuitively what is good for us. Here is my besty boy modelling the Nikken Magflex! <3 

So in tribute to my cat Sasha, I hope this article has been useful. In fact this article is a tribute to all the animals in the world who have loved us, or who need our love. A tribute to the animal kingdom <3