Just lost my cat - how to tell dd aged nearly 3

[mummydreamer]

My gorgeous lovely moggie just disappeared a few days ago and I have just heard that she had been found dead. I'm really quite upset as she was my "first baby" and was so much part of the family. However, biggest crisis is what to tell DD, aged nearly 3. We have no body to bury, as the neighbour had already "disposed" of it, but I have to tell DD something. We aren't religious so kitty heaven just won't cut it really. Any ideas?

I agree with you hatstand. When our cats died within a year of each other my DS (aged 4) said "oh good, we can get a dog now". He did love the cats but wanted fact rather than fluffy fiction.

MummyDreamer - sorry to hear of the loss of your 'baby'. We lost our kitten 'Monkey' (aged 11mths) in March - 5 wks before i had my ds. Like you, my cats were my babies before i actually had a baby.

Umm 'Darling the cat is dead. That means she is not alive anymore'

Most 3 year olds I know will get that. I mean they know they eat dead chickens and dead cows don't they but they still like live ones and enjoy eating dead ones.

I think death is a pretty natural thing and something to learn early on.

I can remember our first cat when we were children was run over when I was 6. I know that is a bit older than 3, and we did still have another cat, but I remember not being upset at all. I think I wrote about it factually in my school news book. My mother was devastated and tears still come to her eyes when that cat is discussed in detail now (nearly 35 years later!)

Yeah I remember lots of family pets dying. Infact I thought one of the point of them was for kids to learn about death. Before Granny pops off and its all abit too much for them.

Kids generally find dead stuff cool, though bit older than 3 when they get into that I would say.

Flum the poor woman who started this thread is upset! You are a hard nut aren't you?