Do Pets Grieve?

Last updated on July 5th, 2024 at 10:57 am

Header image source Unsplash

This was a hard weekend. I lost two of my cats Olive and Sam. Then to top it all off Linus went missing.

As of the time of writing this Linus hasn’t come home. He has been posted as missing on various sites and through the microchip company Home Again.

The loss of Olive and Sam made me think about grief and how it affects all animals.

As humans we have a range of emotions but so do animals. I know there have been studies on grief among primates and even elephants.

I know pets grieve in their own way as well.

Pets understand loss

I like to think that pets understand loss in a way. they may not be as cognitive as we are but they know something or someone is missing.

I’ve seen this firsthand. We had a rabbit named Hop he showed up in December of 2021 and he was Pal’s best friend.

Hop passed away suddenly and the cats knew something was wrong. Pal and Rocket were searching the yard high and low for him. They even searched a shed and the garage for him. They would meow hoping he’d come out to play.

Now you can’t tell me that’s not grief. They didn’t understand how he could just disappear.

When I came home from the vet on Friday with empty carriers Smokey and Bear came to investigate where Olive and Sam were.

They understood Olive hadn’t been feeling well because when they tried to cuddle or play with her she would push them away. They also understood that Sam wasn’t well either because he didn’t always want to play with them or even be around them.

Smokey and Bear looked at each other a bit confused but didn’t seem too concerned about where Olive and Sam had gone.

Every pet grieves differently

Just like us pets grieve differently. I’ve known some pets that become depressed or even stop eating. While others are sad for a while then bounce back to their typical selves again.

I know when we lost Pal Sophie became sad because, after all the years of being with her family, she was suddenly alone. She did get depressed and withdrew from normal activities. She did eventually go about her normal routines again but it took some time.

Like I mentioned before some pets may go around looking for the other lost pet. I know Smokey and Bear are wandering around the yard looking for Linus. They aren’t meowing for him but I can tell they are wondering if he’s hiding in the garden or somewhere in the yard.

They just keep looking to me or my parents for answers to where he went.

I know when Willie went missing Jack called to her it was so sad. He would sit in the yard or on the wall and just call to her. He missed his sister. He’s gotten a bit better now but at times I think he thinks we took her away.

They eventually accept the loss

Just like us pets come to terms with the loss. How long this will take can vary from pet to pet. All we can do is give them love and reassure them.

Share your thoughts of if you think pets grieve in the comments.