How Do You Fix the Tragic Loss of a Pet?

Do you remember how you felt when your childhood pet died? Did you have a pet that died unexpectedly?

As I read the article How to Fix the experience --then the "fish" in Psychotactics newsletter, I realized that my parents and grandparents followed the same action steps to help me get over the tragic loss of my pet.

My grandparents had moved in with us. Grandpap left the toilet seat up in the bathroom where I kept my Easter chick. Yes, I am dating myself...chicks are no longer allowed to be tinted and sold as pets at Easter.

Now back to the story. The chick flew into the toilet and drowned. Grandpap felt responsible for the early demise of my pet. He talked my father into allowing me to get another pet. They recognized that the problem was the lifeless chick. They apologized, gave me hugs, and wiped away my tears. It was too late to get me another chick because they were all sold out. This is where things fell apart.

What happened next was actually the best way to fix the experience. My family allowed me to get a pet of my choice...the kind of pet that I had been asking for but had never been allowed to have because my father absolutely detested cats.

I am smiling now as I remember that one of my classmates had a mother cat with a litter of kittens. The cutest one became mine.

My family fixed the experience in the best way possible for me. Instead of remembering the loss of the chick, I remember the joy of getting a new kitten that I could cuddle.

With love, compassion and empowerment,

Animal lover Amelia