<t>The death of a beloved pet can be a very sad and scary time for children. Pets are more than just animals. They are family. Helping children cope with the loss of a pet in a healthy way can set the stage for other losses in their lives. Here are some key thing to think about when a pet dies.<br/>
<br/>
* Be honest, as hard as it is. It really is the best thing to do.<br/>
* Avoid saying that the pet “went to sleep.” This can be confusing to the very young.<br/>
* Let them ask questions and answer as honestly as you can within their age range.<br/>
* Help the child cope. A memorial or a scrapbook is a good way to help them remember the good times.<br/>
<br/>
Recent events in my own family have reminded me of how a pet's death affects children.<br/>
<br/>
Eight months ago, my dog gave birth to nine puppies: two long-haired brown ones and seven short-haired black and white ones. My kids wanted to keep one so badly, but we already had three dogs and keeping one more just seemed like overkill. My 8-year-old daughter thought otherwise.<br/>
<br/>
She adored them so much that my husband and I decided to give her one as a birthday present. She was so excited to come home after spending the day with her sister to see one of the pups dressed in a cute little bow with a brand new collar. Things progressed, she worked with him, trained him, and really surprised me with how involved she was with him (usually the hard work ends up falling on me).<br/>
<br/>
At about 6 to 7 months of age, however, he contracted Parvo, a pretty deadly disease in dogs. For a week straight, night and day, we traded off taking care of him. All that hard work paid off when on about the eighth day, he perked up as if nothing happened. This brings me to yesterday, about a month after the Parvo incident. I was awoken by my husband, who said it was important and that I needed to come outside right now.<br/>
<br/>
My daughter's pup was on the ground, barely breathing. You really had to look to see any movement in his chest.<br/>
<br/>
I did not know what to do. Did I wake her or did I let her sleep and just tell her later? I ended up going to one of my older girls and asking her what she would want me to do if the situation were reversed. This wasn’t the first animal we have had that died, but usually they were older and it wasn’t a surprise. We also had time to prepare the kids. This time it was so sudden.<br/>
<br/>
We decided to wake her. It was heartbreaking to watch her cry, kiss, and stroke her puppy one last time. She was with him till the end, then she went inside and cried herself to sleep.<br/>
<br/>
My husband and son dug his grave, wrapped him in a blanket, and laid him to rest. They didn’t throw the dirt over him yet, though. I am a little strange that way, but I always like to wait a few hours. We covered the hole with some wood and came in the house, checking often to make sure that our other dogs left the area alone.<br/>
<br/>
Approximately two hours later, my older daughter went outside to go for a little run. When I heard screaming, I thought something had maybe happened to one of our other dogs. To my surprise and horror, however, I saw the dog we just buried stumbling around the yard! It was completely disoriented and not steady on his feet at all.<br/>
<br/>
Honestly I cannot say what was running through my head. We were minutes away from completely burring him! I gathered him up and placed him on a blanket and then called a 24-hour vet hospital that was over two hours away. The vet at first thought it was a prank call. Who can blame her? I couldn’t believe it myself.<br/>
<br/>
To make this rather long story short, within 4 hours he was back to his normal self, as if nothing had ever happened. Within 6 hours he was back to driving me crazy, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Talk about an emotional roller coaster!</t>
<br/>
* Be honest, as hard as it is. It really is the best thing to do.<br/>
* Avoid saying that the pet “went to sleep.” This can be confusing to the very young.<br/>
* Let them ask questions and answer as honestly as you can within their age range.<br/>
* Help the child cope. A memorial or a scrapbook is a good way to help them remember the good times.<br/>
<br/>
Recent events in my own family have reminded me of how a pet's death affects children.<br/>
<br/>
Eight months ago, my dog gave birth to nine puppies: two long-haired brown ones and seven short-haired black and white ones. My kids wanted to keep one so badly, but we already had three dogs and keeping one more just seemed like overkill. My 8-year-old daughter thought otherwise.<br/>
<br/>
She adored them so much that my husband and I decided to give her one as a birthday present. She was so excited to come home after spending the day with her sister to see one of the pups dressed in a cute little bow with a brand new collar. Things progressed, she worked with him, trained him, and really surprised me with how involved she was with him (usually the hard work ends up falling on me).<br/>
<br/>
At about 6 to 7 months of age, however, he contracted Parvo, a pretty deadly disease in dogs. For a week straight, night and day, we traded off taking care of him. All that hard work paid off when on about the eighth day, he perked up as if nothing happened. This brings me to yesterday, about a month after the Parvo incident. I was awoken by my husband, who said it was important and that I needed to come outside right now.<br/>
<br/>
My daughter's pup was on the ground, barely breathing. You really had to look to see any movement in his chest.<br/>
<br/>
I did not know what to do. Did I wake her or did I let her sleep and just tell her later? I ended up going to one of my older girls and asking her what she would want me to do if the situation were reversed. This wasn’t the first animal we have had that died, but usually they were older and it wasn’t a surprise. We also had time to prepare the kids. This time it was so sudden.<br/>
<br/>
We decided to wake her. It was heartbreaking to watch her cry, kiss, and stroke her puppy one last time. She was with him till the end, then she went inside and cried herself to sleep.<br/>
<br/>
My husband and son dug his grave, wrapped him in a blanket, and laid him to rest. They didn’t throw the dirt over him yet, though. I am a little strange that way, but I always like to wait a few hours. We covered the hole with some wood and came in the house, checking often to make sure that our other dogs left the area alone.<br/>
<br/>
Approximately two hours later, my older daughter went outside to go for a little run. When I heard screaming, I thought something had maybe happened to one of our other dogs. To my surprise and horror, however, I saw the dog we just buried stumbling around the yard! It was completely disoriented and not steady on his feet at all.<br/>
<br/>
Honestly I cannot say what was running through my head. We were minutes away from completely burring him! I gathered him up and placed him on a blanket and then called a 24-hour vet hospital that was over two hours away. The vet at first thought it was a prank call. Who can blame her? I couldn’t believe it myself.<br/>
<br/>
To make this rather long story short, within 4 hours he was back to his normal self, as if nothing had ever happened. Within 6 hours he was back to driving me crazy, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Talk about an emotional roller coaster!</t>
