Loss of a Dog: The Importance of Social Support

New research finds that losing a pet dog is a stressful life event. Photo: Muh/Shutterstock.com By Zazie Todd, PhD This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you. Sooner or later, all pet owners have to face the realization that the lives of our animals are far too short. Grieving for a lost pet is further complicated by some people who fail to understand what a pet means. Comments like, “It was just a dog” can be very hurtful. A new study by Lilian Tzivian ( Ben Gurion University of the Negev ) et al investigates the psychological effects of pet loss. The study compared 103 dog owners who had been bereaved in the previous 2 – 4 weeks with 110 owners who currently have a dog, and who had not suffered a pet loss in the previous two years. The cut-off of two years was chosen to ensure that people in this group were not grieving an earlier pet. Amongst the bereaved owners, 89% had had their dog euthani