I don’t know about you, but I can’t imagine myself living without animals. My whole life I’ve been taking care of stray cats and dogs that I honestly know of no life without these furry creatures. They are the reason for my happiness. They are my entire world.
So, you could imagine how painful and difficult it would be for me to deal with their loss one day. It would literally break my heart to pieces. It would shake me so hard that I would need days and maybe months to deal with that pain. Luckily, all of my cats and dogs are in good shape because I give my best efforts in providing them the best life that they could possibly have.
Still, that doesn’t mean that I haven’t felt the gut-wrenching pain of losing a pet.
I know how it is to deal with the death of your best friend. Your best pal.
Twenty years ago, I lost my husky dog called Bella. I still remember the call I got from my mom. She was trying to be calm, but I could feel the panic in her voice. She called me to tell me that Bella was not feeling well so they had to take her to the vet. But what she didn’t want to tell me was that Bella was in fact poisoned.
I remember that I had a class after her call, and I remember not being able to focus on the lecture. Something in me knew that Bella is not okay. Thirty minutes later, I received another phone call. This time my mother couldn’t hold it in, so she burst into tears. The doctors did everything they could, but Bella wasn’t strong enough to overcome the pain.
And so, she died.
I remember I had a hard time accepting that fact. I struggled for a long time. But the thing that shocked me the most was the fact that there were people who perceived me as an unstable person. In a moment where I could use anyone’s support to get back on my feet, some of them couldn’t understand why someone would cry that much over a dog. “She was just a pet” they would say. “It’s not like you lost a person”.
Well, let me tell you something.
I know that some of you out there have never felt the pure and genuine, animal love and as a result never felt emotionally tied to these loving creatures. But that doesn’t give you the right to judge our love for them. And it most certainly doesn’t give you the right to judge our methods of coping with their loss.
Every time you try to mock a person for being too emotional over the death of their pet, remember that you have no clue how they really feel. You also have no clue about the true depth of the connection they shared with their pet.
It can be truly difficult for some of you to understand how close a human can become with an animal, but that is something that you will realize only if you feel that love. All I can say is that animals provide an immense amount of unconditional love that sometimes human cannot. They love without limits. And they love purely. They love in a way that no human being could ever be capable of loving. That is why their loss is like getting shot in the chest.
Any animal lover would understand what I am saying.
But no matter how much I try to explain this to you, the only way you can experience it on your own is by feeling it.
That’s why, the next time you get the urge to comment something inconsiderate like “It’s just a dog”, think before you speak. You don’t know how that person is feeling and you have absolutely idea what that dog meant to them. If you aren’t sure what you are supposed to say, don’t say anything. Just hold their hand and be the support that they desperately need. That will do more for them than your words ever will.
There is a significant amount of trauma and grief in the hearts of people who are going through this sort of experience. Understand their sorrow and respect their feelings.
If you know someone who is going through the same painful process, share this article with them and let them know that you are there for them.
A professional writer with many years of experience in the fields of psychology, human relationships, science, and spirituality. If you have a general question or comment please fill out the form and we will get back to you as soon as possible https://curiousmindmagazine.com/contact-us/
