Is it silly to grieve for a pet?

No, it is not silly to grieve for a pet. You should certainly not give up trying to find him. A loved pet is just like any other person (or thing) that one loves. You have companionship and a deep sense of pleasure in interacting with them. Grief is a very real emotion, whether it is for a human or a pet, to say that it's 'only a dog' is to brutally misunderstand your feelings. Of course, we do have to be more often prepared to lose a pet than we do a human loved one, because pets generally have much shorter lives than us. In fact, owning and loving a pet is one of the ways in which we learn to deal with grief. You may find it useful to read these pages which explain what grief is and how to handle it: http://y2u.co.uk/Really_Useful/Animal/Ru_Animal_008_Dealing_Grief_Departed_Pet.htm http://home.att.net/~velvet-hammer/grief.html http://www.broadcaster.org.uk/section1/scenarios/grief.html

Of course not, and if you treated him like part of the family then your friends and family need to understand this and grow hearts..Dont give up on him...I really really hope that you do find him safe...

no, i dont think its silly to grieve over a pet. They become part of the family and when one goes there is a hole in our lives blessed be

i dont have pet at home..but i understand what you felt towards it...i dont think it is silly to grieve or whatever to it since it become so attached to your family and loved this dog..

i don't think its silly to grieve over a pet. we moved a few years ago and it was to a smaller place so we had to get rid of our dog who was bigger. she was the first dog i ever had and i still miss her.

of course it's not silly. why is greiving for someone you love and who loved you silly? there's no such things as "just" a dog. a dog is an amazing creature, and so full of unconditional love.

Definitely not! It is not silly at all. I have dogs. And I have experienced losing them. A few have passed because of old age. It is a really difficult experience, especially if you've gotten closer and habe formed a bond with the dog/s..

Don't worry, that is a very normal reaction to something very likely to happen. hang on there...you are still a normal person. And its not immature either. You have to grieve to get over it.

No, it is not silly to grieve for a pet. I was in the same situation with my dog - Buffy. The last time I saw her was about two hours before she got lost. We really tried looking for her. One neighbor told me that someone got hold of my dog but he refused to turn my dog to us. He apparently sold my dog to someone else. The guy transferred residence and we couldn't find him anymore. I am still grieving for my dog. I missed her terribly. I wish I can find her again. She was a member of the family. Buffy may be gone but she will always stay in my heart and in the heart of my family.

Of course you're not silly! He was - is - part of your family. Those people obviously never owned a pet. Keep looking for him, I bet he misses you and want to get back home to you.

I think its perfectly normal. A dog can be your best friend. Its like there is feelings attached and when the person/animal is gone, you'll be so sad. For all other types of pets as well. That is why I never want to have a pet. I'm scared when they die... :D

It's not silly to grieve for your pet. bucause it's not just a dog, you are getting along very well,your pet brought your joyous moment, it have because a part of your life. so it makes sense!

You are not being silly at all. If my dog was ever missing I would not be able to stand it!!!! My heart would break and I would cry tons and tons. I will pray for you though that Casper will be brought back to you.....Okay, I just prayed and I hope my prayer for you will be answered!!!

No don't give up hope, cause he might show up sooner or later. Cause my dog spike ran away, and i searched everywhere, and cried for him and such. We searched for him for hours, and guess where he turned out to be. Some guy thought he was a stair, so he put him in his backyard. If he was part of your family, and you loved him then dont give up. dont listen to anyone you tells you to get over him, you know him instead of a dog like a family member.

No, it is not at all silly to grieve for a pet. I had a cat once and I love him very much. Up until today I don't know whether he is still alive or not because he just ran away from me. I don't know the reason. But I grieve for him and I dreamt about him once in a while. I miss him very much and it is not silly to grieve for a pet.

i think thats faith we cant cancel that faith if you belvie it or not there is thing like faith in every bodies live we have to accept that thing some times we willget one and some times we will loose thats the part of life we have to accpet it dont worry you will get nice dog next time

You're a certified dog lover and it's not silly to miss him...it means that you, just like any human being is capable of loving, not only dogs and animals, but much more human beings...hope you will find Casper soon, and that he's safe somewhere else...don't despair, he might just show up one day right in your door...

it's good to grieve... it's in humans mature to grieve, especially for some thing dear to us who was taken away... end a pet is fitting in this category... although is normal for beings to die/run away... actually is quite harder when it comes unexpectedly... but about this things we can't do much... it's just happening... I have some relatives very involved in helping abandoned pets... and I think they were witnesses of a lot of dying animals, but also to a lot of recovering animals... it takes only some time and a lot of dedication to the cause... I really admire them, cos they are struggling to make a difference... I saw in the eyes of their's pets that they are happy to be around this kind of people... and that is fantastic;)

I think it is what we should do.

What your friends say proves that they have not had animals. I know exacly how it feels. When I was 12 We needed to put down our dog Baloo, He was a the time twelve and a half, and since he had been a part of the family first he was my big brother. The problem was that he was born with epilepsy, so by the end he was very tired and didn't want to live anymore, first he only eat meatballs and drank milk then he only eat meatballs, then he didn't eat anything. Sorry for rambeling, but then my parents needed to take him to a vet and give him the shot to put him down. Now don't get me wrong we all loved that dog, and he was a very big part of the family, but he told us just with his look that "I am tired, lets just get it over with.", That night I don't remember if I slept I only remember crying for hours into my pillow. The day after My parents told me that they had been with him unntil after the shot, that the vet had asked them if they wanted to wait out side while they gave Baloo the shot, but my dad had just said no we are going to be with him until the end his family. and dad said that right before the shot ballo had raised his head from my dads lap and looked him in the eyes, and thoose eyes said thank you! So I don't think that you are silly or stupid, of cause your dog Casper is a part of the family