Dead Pets Podcast
A podcast about pet grief that celebrates the lives of the creatures who have changed ours.
Each episode, you’ll hear from guests about a pet from their past. We’ll talk about why we loved them, why it hurts so bad when they’re gone, how they changed us, how we carry them with us, and all of the joy and meaning they brought with them in their short lives.
Dead Pets Podcast
A Special Message
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Pet loss grief; the pain explained | Sarah Hoggan DVM | TEDxTemecula
The emotional costs of euthanasia | Sarah Hoggan DVM | TEDxTemecula
Grieving Your Cat, Dog or Any Other Animal Family Member - Tips, Tools and My Story.
Do not stand
By my grave, and weep.
I am not there,
I do not sleep—
I am the thousand winds that blow
I am the diamond glints in snow
I am the sunlight on ripened grain,
I am the gentle, autumn rain.
As you awake with morning's hush,
I am the swift, up-flinging rush
Of quiet birds in circling flight,
I am the day transcending night.
Do not stand
By my grave, and cry—
I am not there,
I did not die.
— Clare Harner, The Gypsy, December 1934
Welcome to Dead Pets, the podcast about pet grief that celebrates the lives of the creatures who have changed ours. The day that I have been fearing has finally come to pass. My love has been transformed into grief. This week I lost the little love of my life, my perfect boy, the world's most handsome black cat, Dodge. I got Dodge 19 years ago when he was just a little barn kitten and the last one left in his litter. Part of starting this podcast was to help my heart prepare for Dodge's eventual death, to talk to others who lost their pets, to collect everything I could to brace myself for the impact, to turn their stories into the knowledge that I would survive his loss. And I'm so, so glad that I did. To those who have been on the show, thank you. You sharing your heartache has made mine just a little more bearable. Thank you to Georgie, whose episode about her precious boy Tucker is coming out in a few weeks. Thank you to Wayne, whose words about the loss of his perfect girl, his bodhisattva, Oreo, have helped me feel connected to my love for Dodge amid all of this anguish. My friends, my family, my husband have cooked for me, held me, listened to me, and cried with me. I'll never forget how they've shown up and how not a single person has tried to minimize this pain. I'll be talking about Dodge in a few weeks' time, but for now I am taking a mid-season break to grieve, and dead pets will be back on April 2nd. For now, I wanted to share some resources that have really helped me in the past couple of days. The links will be in the show notes. And if you've lost a pet, whether recently or years ago, I encourage you to watch these videos. Sarah Hogan is an emergency vet based in Texas, and she has two TED Talks on YouTube, one on pet grief and one on the emotional cost of euthanasia. I've watched them both several times, and it has really softened the sharpness of the grief that I'm feeling right now. Also, Jackson Galaxy, the guy that hosted the My Cat from Hell show, has a video on pet grief where he articulates the pain in a way that really resonated with me. And he shares some journal prompts that a grief counselor shared with him. In the video, he says that there is an innate fear that talking about our grief will turn us into dust. And that also really resonated with me too. Because that's what it feels like. If you know someone who has lost a pet and you're wondering how to support them, keep checking on them. Keep sending that, hey, I'm thinking about you text. Ask them questions about their pet, what their favorite thing about them was, where their pet slept at night, if they liked to cuddle, what their favorite treat was, what they loved the most, what hurts the most. If you can, go be with them in the mornings, because mornings are the absolute worst. My sister-in-law sent me a poem that has also brought me comfort. Do not stand at my grave and weep. Do not stand at my grave and weep. I am not there, I do not sleep. I am a thousand winds that blow. I am the diamond glints on snow. I am the sunlight on ripened grain. I am the gentle autumn rain. When you awaken in the morning's hush, I am the swift, uplifting rush of quiet birds encircled flight. I am the soft stars that shine at night. Do not stand at my grave and cry. I am not there. I did not die. At the end of each episode, if you listen past the credits, you will have heard one of my favorite quotes. Until one has loved an animal, part of one's soul remains unawakened. The pain I'm feeling is overwhelming right now. It's brutal and it's disorienting. But I would do it over and over and over again. Thank you for awakening my soul, my perfect, perfect boy. Thank you for listening. Dead Pets will be back on April 2nd. If you have a dead pet that you'd like to share, please send an email to deadpetsofficial at gmail.com. Dead Pets is a wild media industries production. It is written and hosted by me, Elise Wilde. Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened. Anatola Franz.