Long live the internet!

Here's a gem I found this morning:http://www.animalhospice.org/
These people provide grief support before and after your pet dies. This includes giving you suggestions on reading materials, providing telephone support (though it's not toll free, and is located in Idaho), answering emails, and providing a goldmine of information on their website. 

These people are so amazing! Check out their response to one of the FAQs about how to cope with grieving pets:
We recommend the human that felt a love for the deceased animal sit and share with the grieving animal about the loss, holding the animal, sitting next to it, or across from it, whichever is accepted by the animal, and tell them `exactly' what happened to their animal friend. We tell them very slowly and explain all of the details of the loss as closely as possible. Many times this seems to be the beginning of the grieving animal's healing. Whether the animal understands your words, sees images through your thought processes or feels your emotions is not to be debated here. We at AHCC believe that the barrier between species is lowered through this type of clear and honest sharing. 


And here's part of their philosophy regarding euthanasia:
At AHCC, we discuss how we sit with our ailing animal and are very quiet. From this place of quiet and peace, we share with the animal that the illness or old age is irreversible and that we are open to hearing or feeling what the animals wishes are about the future. Not always, and still, many times the care giver will get a feeling from the animal such as: `I'm fine for now, let's wait awhile', or `I'm very tired and ready to go', or a variety of impressions or feelings that will help the person with the choice of the decision.

I love the focus on your connection with your pet. I truly believe that I can sense what Lil and Ophelia are thinking and feeling, just as they seem to know what I'm thinking and feeling. People dismiss that sort of deep bond, so I seldom refer to it, but it's there, and I love that it's been validated on this site. Thank you, people!!

Look into my eyes and listen carefully...