“Death ends a life,
not a relationship”
- Mitch Albom
End-Of-Life Care, Advance Planning, Grief, Loss & Memorialization
Whether you need help finding hospice or palliative care for your dog’s final days, navigating grief, preparing for their death, or planning a memorial ceremony, I can support you, your family (human and otherwise) during this difficult time.
Grief over an animal is often not understood and overlooked by others, and it can help to have someone supporting you, holding space for your individual experience and feelings.
Our animals are beloved family members, each one irreplaceable.
As a soon-to-be-certified Companion Animal Death Doula, I am here to help, even if it’s just connecting you with other professionals right now.
Recognizing the very different needs of dogs at the end of Their lives
The last year with this little old lady was both heartbreaking and genuinely heartwarming. She had good days, not-so-good days, and bad days. We laughed and cried, and I took more pictures of her than ever before, knowing the end was near. I was privileged to be able to arrange my days around her special needs and care.
Not everyone is able to do that, but let’s talk about what your dog might need and how much of that you or someone in their circle of care can provide.
Let’s see how comfortable we can make your beloved’s last chapter, and how you can use this time to prepare yourself.
Coming soon: webinar on end-of-life pet care
Dealing with Anticipatory Grief & Protecting our dogs
In many ways, it can be very special to acknowledge that our companion is in their final phase of life. Denial isn’t helping the dog, or you. When we accept that they are slowing down, preparing to stop living, we can embrace their needs and support them during the dying process.
We can learn to let go.
Sometimes it happens very quickly, and sometimes they stay with us much longer than we anticipated.
In the end, the end always comes too soon, but by processing our own feelings, we can be more present to theirs, and make this experience easier and much more comfortable for our dogs. They deserve a calm presence, and they need us to notice what’s going on with them.
Yes, there will be times we cry into their fur, but we need to recognize that this isn’t helping them. Talking to other humans, a therapist, or a doula, is kinder to our dying dog.
I know Grief.
When you get to my age, you’ve most likely had your share of loss. All of us have lost humans, many of us have lost companion animals.
Some losses we were prepared for, some hit harder than others. Each experience is different, and each of us processes (or doesn’t) loss in their own unique way. There is no such thing as the “right way” to grieve.
I also personally believe there is absolutely no need to “get over it”, or “move on”. Why would we stop loving them? To me, grief is the continued expression of love, just now without a physical recipient.
In our society, death is still very much a topic most people would rather not talk about, and considering the end of the life of our pets is unbearable for many loving guardians.
So when the time comes, many of us are unprepared, overwhelmed, in shock, and full of regrets. To add insult to injury, oftentimes those around as have no way of comprehending how profound of a hole this can leave, how insurmountable it can feel to come home to an empty house. We might hear things like “it was just a dog, you can get another one.” No one would say, “oh, you lost [insert human], just get another one.”
There is no “other one”! They’re all one of a kind.
I am here to hold space for YOUR grief. Whatever it may look like, however it may feel. No rules. Unleash your grief.
My Dog Doula Offerings
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30-Minute Informal Conversation
If you’re not sure where to start, let’s begin with a phone call and talk about your current situation, your concerns, and questions you may have about the benefits of working with a Doula.
Together we will find the right path for you and your multi-species family.
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Connecting you with Resources
As a Doula, I offer non-medical support. But with a large network of end-of-life care professionals, I can help find other support you might need, like:
Senior pet care (holistic & veterinary)
Hospice & palliative care
Ethical euthanasia & mobile vets
Pet loss support & community
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Individualized Solutions
End-of-life care consultations
Anticipatory grief support
Advance care planning
Strategies to prepare, yet make the most of the remaining time
Education around the dying process, euthanasia and natural death
Ceremonies, rituals, & memorials
Mourning & bereavement support
Gone but never forgotten
I stand here today, ready to offer you my support, because I’ve experienced pet loss that thoroughly wrecked me.
I know how hard it can be, and how hard it can be for those around us to hold space for the kind of despair that can overcome us.
My soon-to-be-completed certification (end of November) as companion animal end-of-life doula is dedicated to my lost ones. Humans, turtles, bunnies, birds, and dogs.
All of them loved, none of them forgotten.
All of them gone, but forever in my heart.