Getting help and support with your loss

The loss of a pet affects many people in a myriad ways, and often times people who are grieving may not know where to turn for advice and support. 

There are, however, a number of resources specifically designed to help you cope with your loss.

Compassion Understood

At Rainbow bridge, we support Compassion Understood both as a resource provider for clear, reliable information about our pet's end-of-life and as an essential training partner for the veterinary industry. For pet parents they aim to:

• Guide you in planning for this difficult time

• Help you make the right decisions

• Provide clear and accessible information

• Cope with the passing of your beloved pet

The site content has been written by veterinary professionals and pet loss experts, with contributions from many working in the field of pet loss support.

www.compassionunderstood.com

The Blue Cross

It can sometimes help to share your feelings with someone who knows from personal experience how distressing the loss of a pet can be, and who will listen with compassion and without judgement. 

The Blue Cross charity runs a Pet Bereavement Support Service which can be contacted on 0800 096 6606 (UK only including Northern Ireland). The support line is open from 8.30am - 8.30pm every day. 

All calls are free and confidential from a UK landline. If calling from a mobile phone, some phone networks may charge. Alternatively, you can also email the Pet Bereavement Support Service on pbssmail@bluecross.org.uk.

Further support is available on the Blue Cross PBSS site.

Cats Protection’s Paws to listen grief support service

If you’re experiencing pet-related grief you can call their free and confidential phone line to talk to one of their volunteer listeners. 

The team of trained volunteers offer emotional and practical support to owners experiencing the loss of a cat. While they are unable to offer counselling, the team provides a supportive ear to callers struggling to cope with pet-related grief as well as providing information about topics such as euthanasia, burial and cremation.

The line is open between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday, on Freephone 0800 024 94 94.

Further information about Cats Protection’s grief and loss support work can be found on the national website: www.cats.org.uk/grief

Forums

The Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement, based in the US, along with The Ralph Site which is based in the UK, both run Pet Loss Forums where you can connect with other pet owners who are experiencing similar emotions to you.

There are many special Pet Loss trained counsellors. You can find some of these on the Ralph site and also within the Counselling Directory. 

 

Please Note: We haven’t ‘vetted’ any of these, and we are not directly endorsing their services. It’s best to carry out further research and if possible speak to them and ask for references before you enter into any counselling agreement.

If you feel that you are not coping with your day-to-day life and feel that you need additional help then we urge you to seek help from your doctor or from the Samaritans who are available around the clock, 365 days a year.