Our team at Lifting Stars Veterinary Homecare has collected a few tools, guides, and answers to help you navigate your pet’s end-of-life care or manage your grief from their loss. Below, you can find resources for peer-to-peer connection, counselling, supporting your children through the loss of a pet, and honouring the animal friends who have been your companions in life.
You might also find it useful to browse our FAQs, or learn about how to assess your pet’s quality of life on a day-to-day basis. If you have questions that aren’t answered on this site (or even if they are, but you’d like more assistance), please get in touch. Our support specialists will be happy to help you in whatever way we can.
Monique Verhoef, Vancouver-based Registered Therapeutic Counsellor, is a pet owner and a specialist in grief from pet loss.
Website: equalcounselling.com
Dennis Dion, a Registered Clinical Counsellor who is also based in the Vancouver area, has been supporting people facing painful losses for almost 20 years. Dennis provides grief counselling to help support you through the difficult time of pet bereavement.
Website: dennisdiontherapy.com
Kari-Ann Thor, M.Ed., Registered Therapeutic Counsellor and founder of Periwinkle Counselling Services, offers the individual pet loss support services plus access to a support group.
Website: existentialcounselling.ca
Located in Surrey, Gateway partners with us to offer dignified pet cremation services in Metro Vancouver. Their website also offers valuable resources for guidance regarding end-of-life matters pertaining to your beloved pet, including “Pre-Planning and Pet Aftercare” and “Coping with the Loss of a Companion Animal.” Gateway also offers a Pet Compassion Careline to their clients. This dedicated helpline connects pet parents and their families with skilled, compassionate, and confidential counsellors who are proficient in English, Spanish, and French.
Website: gatewaypetmemorial.com
Veterinary Partner provides reliable and up-to-date animal health information to support you in the care of your pet. This website was established by veterinarians and experts of the Veterinary Information Network (VIN), the world’s first and largest online veterinary database and community. Read their article “Pet Loss Support Information” for a comprehensive list of online grief resources.
Website: veterinarypartner.vin.com
Petloss.com is a gentle and compassionate website for pet lovers who are grieving the death of a pet or caring for an ill pet. Here you will find personal support, thoughtful advice, The Monday Pet Loss Candle Ceremony, Tribute Pages, healing poetry, the Rainbow Bridge Poem and more.
Website: petloss.com
The Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement (APLB) was established to promote and expand the field of pet loss and grief support by providing pet family support services and resources that honour the human/animal bond. They have an extensive collections of resources on understanding and navigating grief and pet loss, and we encourage you to explore their online library.
Website: aplb.com
HelpGuide.org is an independent nonprofit that runs one of the world’s leading mental health websites. It provides trustworthy information to improve mental health and make healthy changes. Their article “Coping with Losing a Pet” is a comprehensive article regarding grief and pet loss.
Website: helpguide.org
The International Association for Animal Hospice and Palliative Care is the leading association for pet hospice, palliative care, and euthanasia for companion animals. See their helpful articles “How to Support a Grieving Pet,” “How to Help a Child Grieving a Beloved Pet,” “How to Memorialize a Beloved Pet,” and “How to Take Care of Yourself When Grieving.”
Website: iaahpc.org
The Colorado State University Argus Institute provides support services to help you make informed decisions about your pet’s care and to support you through this difficult process. See articles such as “How To Cope When Your Pet Is Ill,” “Grieving the Loss of a Pet,” “How Animals Grieve,” and “Moving Forward After the Loss of a Pet.”
Website: vetmedbiosci.colostate.edu
The Ohio State University provides produced a comprehensive article with very useful considerations for helping children with pet loss. We have made “Helping Children Cope With The Serious Illness or Death of a Companion Animal” available for download on our site. You also can find more resources for coping with pet loss at their website.
Website: vmc.vet.osu
The death of a family pet is an important time for adults to help children express grief in emotionally healthy ways, free of shame or embarrassment. See the article titled “Helping Children With Pet Loss” for their suggestions in helping children at this difficult time.
Website: csuveterinaryhealth.org
The International Association for Animal Hospice and Palliative Care has produced a very helpful article that we have made available for download on this site: “How to Help a Child Grieving a Beloved Pet.” Visit their website for more supports and recommended resources for pet owners facing illness or loss.
Website: iaahpc.org
Rambling Hound Media offers professional pet photography services in the greater Vancouver area. Please reach out to Heather to inquire about her “Tribute” sessions, which create an invaluable keepsake of the years spent with your companion.
Website: ramblinghound.com
We invite all of our clients to submit a photo and a few words of tribute to the furry companions who gave them so much joy. We love reading through these beautiful tributes, as they help us remember the wonderful pets that we have loved and lost ourselves. They may provide you with comfort and connection as well.
In their own times of loss, Dr. Jeff and other members of the Lifting Stars team have found comfort in the following poems. If you have another favourite poem that has helped you through time of grief, we’d love to know about it.
