Death of my dog Milly.

Thank you. It means so much when others understand grieving for a precious pet.

Sending care to you, @nksneuro, and to each of you who have experienced the loss of a much loved pet. One thing that has been helpful to me when my grief was particularly intense was to remind myself that this loss is worthy of my tears and that my grief honors the life of the one I loved and the love we built and shared, even as it softens (some) over time. After 5 years, it is still challenging, at times, to turn toward my memories of suddenly losing my then-11-year-old Willa. Luckily, I still have photos and some videos. I remember many ways that she let me know that she loved me, and how she let me know that she felt loved by me. I continue to feel more than blessed that she was in my life for that too-short but beautiful time we spent together.

My thanks to you, @nksneuro, and to each of you who have shared your grief and the love that underlies it. This gave me an opportunity to honor and remember Willa once again. I wish each of you moments of warmth and maybe humor, too, as you remember Milly, Marti, Isabella, Einstein and each of the unnamed loved and lost pets.

I happen to see your post and do hope you are doing well. Often the love and memory of a pet can hurt so much more than a human. Their love is pure, and unconditional. Always there for us no matter what is going on. In a nasty upside down world our pets are a constant in our lives. There's often an unbreakable tether. Our souls often tangle with our pets. Just wanted to share a caring heart ~~