During the time of a loss of a pet you and your family are wrapped up in the emotional grief and anguish as well as the loneliness that you are feeling.
As you move forward in the coming days, you will be required to make decisions on the best way to honor your pet.
Many families grapple over whether they should have a pet memorial ceremony, choose pet cremation or an at home burial. The practice of burying at home is most common in the case of a dog funeral.
Those that shared the life and love of your pet can have the same kind of Celebration of Life ceremony that we do with our human friends that we lose.
When we choose at home burial, you do have the choice of cremation with biodegradable urns or burial with scattering urns.
For those that don’t select cremation there are wonderful ways to honor your pet with pet caskets.
The choice of which type of at home burial is completely and totally personal and is something that the family should talk about and agree upon to help everyone participate in the grieving process.
Burial markers are another way to signify the love of your pet.
This gives everyone a location to visit and a place that allows you to express your sadness and loss.
- At home burials have historically been the most common method of saying goodbye to your beloved pet, although a more recent trend has been in the creation of pet cemeteries.
- These are perfect for families that don’t have access to a yard or outdoor location for an at-home burial, many that live in apartments or for families that are not living in a permanent residence.
- The pet cemeteries allow for both in-ground and urn burials as well as personalized markers for the families to visit. However, choosing a cemetery brings the same down-side as those for people.
- If you move away, you might find it difficult to return to visit and honor your pet in a cemetery.
If you choose an at home burial you need to be reassured that it is perfectly normal to go to the gravesite, cry and even talk to your pet.
This is part of the process of grieving and having a close location at the home that you all shared is an action that you can take during a time when you feel vulnerable.
When we experience loss we are awash with our inability to control our destiny and having the ability to visit a burial place can act as a catalyst to help us move forward.
Pet parents often express the experience of loss as more intense with their beloved pets than even their human relations. This is also quite normal, as our pets show complete devotion to us and live a life of innocence within our emotional structure.
While we may have done everything to try to keep them in a healthy and loving environment, we may blame ourselves for their passing.
This is part of the cycle of life and having an at home burial is one way to give individuals and families the strength to continue.