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Group Helps Pet Owners Grieve Loss Of Companions
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Published: March 5, 2008
TRINITY - He arrived with pictures, stories and sympathy cards to help him heal a heart that still aches.
Hudson-area resident Si Azar couldn't stop talking about the double loss of his dogs, Lola and Forrest, at a recent pet owners support group at Trinity Memorial Gardens.
He recounted how they all - Azar, the veterinarian and her assistant - cried when they euthanized Forrest, and how he had buried one beloved pooch beside the other.
On this recent Wednesday morning, Azar was the only attendee at the pet loss support group sponsored by Gulfside Regional Hospice.
Typically, one to five people have come to the semimonthly meetings - the next one is today - since hospice started the group in October.
"We saw a need in the community," said Peggy Hess, the Gulfside social worker who facilitates the group.
The program originally was to last six weeks, but hospice staff decided to extend it.
Hess understands how group participants feel, because her family had to have 14-year-old Kenny euthanized.
"That dog walked into our lives," she said.
"Your loss is very real. You adore those animals."
The bond forged by an animal's unconditional love goes deep, she said.
"The loss of a pet can be just as intense as the loss of a human," Hess said.
Because Azar's friends didn't understand that, he didn't feel comfortable sharing his grief with them.
In the support group, Azar, 71, found others who needed to express their pain as much as he did.
One woman whose cat died wept so hard at one meeting that she couldn't speak, he recalled.
Grief-stricken pet parents bring pictures, memorabilia and stories to share. Sometimes their sad tales turn into a celebration of happy times spent with their animal.
"It's important to be able to talk about the situation and be able to cry," Hess said.
A group of people in similar situations brings its own healing, she said.
"More than anything, they need to know people will understand," she said.
"One of the overriding themes is everyone has been supportive of one another."
Participants are in different stages of grief. One woman's pet died eight years ago and she was looking for a sympathetic listener, which she felt she'd never had.
Another woman was anticipating the loss of her sick pet.
Guilt - about leaving their animals alone, about the chosen medical treatment - is often a common theme.
Hospice staff members regard the pet support group as an important community outreach, Hess said.
"People are pretty committed to the group," she said.
IF YOU GO
The Gulfside Regional Hospice pet loss support group meets from 10 to 11:30 a.m. every other Wednesday at Trinity Memorial Gardens, 12609 Memorial Drive, off State Road 54. Sessions are free.
The next two meetings are today and March 19.
For details, call Nancy Terkeurst at (727) 845-5707, ext. 1035.
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