Book Review - Saying Good-Bye to the Pet You Love by Lorri A. Greene, Jacquelyn Landis

Book Description
Written by a psychologist who is a leader in the field of pet bereavement, this practical but sympathetic guide validates the survivor’s often misunderstood feelings, explains the importance of the human-animal bond, and offers strategies for working through the grieving process. Some of the coping techniques include memorializing the pet, recognizing problematic thinking, and finding support. The book also covers dealing with guilt and explaining the pet’s death to a child.

From the Publisher
This is a book for loving pet owners who have lost a pet. Often friends and family downplay the sorrow one experiences over the loss of the pet, but this new book helps pet lovers of all sorts, including those with working animals, deal with all levels of grief. It not only includes cognitive self-help tools to help readers truly understand and work through their grief, it is is also written by a psychologist who is a leader in the filed of pet bereavement.

From the Inside Flap
No matter what your friends and family might think or say, you know that the sorrow you feel about your pet’s death is real and very painful.

Until now, not much help has been available for those who have lost a pet. Saying Goodbye to the Pet You Love, written by a psychologist with twenty years of experience as a pet-bereavement specialist, helps you understand the very special human-animal bond, which, in turn, can help you deal with your terrible loss.

You will find solid psychological bereavement techniques here that will support you in your grieving process and help you find your own unique path to recovery. This book includes chapters on coping skills for easing a child through pet loss, and for those who accidentally killed, or witnessed the death of, their pets. The special needs of the guardians of working animals are also addressed, as are self-help resources for the elderly.

***

February 9

This was a good and interesting book about dealing with the loss of your pet. I didn't want a religious view of pet loss, which there seems to be a number of, so this was ideal for me. While I didn't need to read every chapter because they didn't apply to me, I still thought the rest was well-written and helped me. I thought it interesting that there are three kind of grievers, and it gave me insight into how some people can say the things they do to those who are feeling the loss more. I think it's sad how it's not 'ok' to grieve for a pet in our society. Why is it any different than a human? I'm so glad there are books out there like this that can help me and others know that we are allowed feel the way we do when we lose a dear pet.

4/5 stars