For those of us who have lost a beloved pet

[Laurie]

Two of my dear friends lost pets they loved dearly today. I, myself, lost my sweet Sam last Wednesday. I found this today and want to offer comfort with these words:

MY FOREVER PET

There's something missing in my home,

I feel it day and night,

I know it will take time and strength

before things feel quite right.

But just for now, I need to mourn,

My heart -- it needs to mend.

Though some may say, "It's just a pet,"

I know I've lost a friend.

You've brought such laughter to my home,

and richness to my days.

A constant friend through joy or loss

with gentle, loving ways.

Companion, friend, and confidante,

A friend I won't forget.

You'll live forever in my heart,

My sweet, forever pet.

-- Susanne Taylor

 

[leni]

Thank you for posting that Laurie, that is a sweet poem. Losing a pet is incredibly hard but it's comforting to know that there are people here that understand how you feel, that it isn't just a pet. They can have such an incredible impact on our lives. Hugs to everyone who has lost a pet.

 

[addictedtochins]

That is beautiful and so true. You and Sam are still in my thoughts.

 

[Maia]

Thanks for posting. It's so true, especially for a pet you were super bonded with. I still get teary eyed when I try to go to sleep at night sometimes without my sweet kitty of 18 years cuddled up against me.

 

[3CsMommy]

Just sent this to my Better Half, who lost his dog Rascal about 2 weeks ago. It reminds me of my dog Jackpot, my first cat Sheba, and all the rest of the critters that will follow me across that Bridge if I'm allowed to go. (If not, I'd be just as content carrying a pooper scooper around on this side of it. If my animals aren't there, I don't want to go anyway.)

 

[Luci]

this is so sweet laur.

every now and then, i'll text my sister something like "i miss bucky" or "remember when snitchy...".
they never really leave us. there are times when they visit me in my dreams and theyre the sweetest dreams ever. there are days when i still cry over a pet i lost years and years ago.

this situation is oh so painful. i dont deal with death well at all. but this poem makes me smile to think that theyre looking down on us all the time. when i was little, i pictured my pets to be in heaven, sitting on a cloud above my house. actually...i still believe that

 

[Chinmama]

That's a great poem Laurie. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Nancy]

That is lovely and brought tears to my eyes. Thanks for sharing Laurie. :hug2:

 

[lauralynne]

*sniffle*

Thanks for sharing, Laurie. So true.

 

[6Dusters]

Well done.

I've told God many times I look forward to seeing my loving pets again when I arrive in heaven. Love is very difficult to let go of when loved ones or pets pass away.

 

[hkkjstwcl]

I feel stronger to know that many of you feel the same way as I feel toward the pets that passed on me. I feel that I am not alone in sadness.

 

[StevieP]

That is a great poem. Loosing a pet is one of the hardest things in life to go through.

 

[addictedtochins]

Like I said before, my mansion in Heaven will smell like a ferret, have litterboxes, chewed up baseboards from the chins and a hitching post in the driveway. Oh and while we are on the subject there will be a 2010 Dodge Challenger in the garage (ooh how fun driving will be when I can't kill myself or others lol)

 

[Marie5656]

While we are sharing, I found this one after a friend had to make the difficult decision to end her cat's pain.

Poem For Cats

And God asked the feline spirit
Are you ready to come home?
Oh, yes, quite so, replied the precious soul
And, as a cat, you know I am most able
To decide anything for myself.

Are you coming then? asked God.
Soon, replied the whiskered angel
But I must come slowly
For my human friends are troubled
For you see, they need me, quite certainly.

But don't they understand? asked God
That you'll never leave them?
That your souls are intertwined. For all eternity?
That nothing is created or destroyed?
It just is....forever and ever and ever.

Eventually they will understand,
Replied the glorious cat
For I will whisper into their hearts
That I am always with them
I just am....forever and ever and ever.

Author Unknown

 

[Laurie]

When we were young girls--Lisa and I, we asked our Grandma Welch what heaven was like, she was a very staunch Baptist woman, but I know she had her own views on heaven and they differed from ours. Lisa wanted to make sure there were 3 Musketeer bars in heaven and even though I think Grandma Welch really didn't think so she said yes. I asked her if Heidi would be there and it took her a long time to answer--I really don't think my Grandma thought so, she wasn't much of a pet lover having grown up on a farm. But what she said was this, God brings you to heaven to have eternal life and joy. He gave up his only son to make this happen. He loves you so much, you are a treasure to him, he wants you to be happy, and if being with Heidi again will make you happy, then yes, Heidi will be with you there.

She said this to me when I was 8 years old--I remember every word.

Heaven holds my heart because my Grandma Welch is there as is Lisa, but I also know I will be with Heidi & Beauregard, Squash, Gena, Abner, Lucy, Libby, Gordon and my sweet Sammy.

I will never fear giving up my time here to be with them again

 

[Jenn]

Loss is so incredibly hard for us, but we do need to remember that our beloved family, friends, and pets are not gone at all. They are forever in our mind and in our heart, and are waiting for us to meet with them again someday. Laurie, that was a beautiful poem, and quite appropriate, and I thank you for sharing it with us.

 

[ticklechin]

This was for given to me for Gino, my gorgeous P/W who passed to soon.


Your tiny paws reach for me in my dreams
as you did in life
taking my heart in your small fingers
in the brief time we were together.
I feel your whiskers on my cheek,
hear your diminutive whisper in my ear
near the shoulder that
you loved to snuggle on.

I reach to touch the
velvety softness that was you
but grasp only heartache
and hard reality.

I am disconcerted that something
so little and fragile
should leave such a large hole
and such a powerful ache in my heart.

I find myself weeping for
joy never to be shared,
baby kisses lost to the wind and
the missing piece of my heart that was you

These you took with you
along with my love.

What might have been....
difficult words often spoken
Now said in fading whispers
with a sigh.

I miss you so much.

 

[suzi1780]

I am so sorry to hear you lost your sweet Sam. That was a very sweet poem and it brought tears to my eyes. It is so hard to loss a beloved pet. I lost my beloved kitty Soleil 3 years ago and I still think of her everyday. I made a memory frame box that has pictures of her in it, her collar, a lock of her fur and one of her toy's in it. I also have a locket that I wear with her picture it in.

I have found comfort in several of these poems
http://petloss.com/poems/poems.htm

and I also really enjoy the poem Funeral Blues by W.H. Auden. It doesn't really have anything to do with pets but it does express the feeling of heartbreaking loss-

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He is Dead.
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.

He was my North, my South, my East and West,
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong.

The stars are not wanted now; put out every one,
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun,
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods;
For nothing now can ever come to any good

 

[3CsMommy]

Poem For Cats

Oh jebus :cry3: That was my Sheba.