Still devastated over dog loss

[ThatNattyPlayer]

As the title says, my dog died in April, he was 14, wasn’t poorly but died suddenly at home so it was still very unexpected.
i am really struggling to move on, if anyone mentions him or I see a picture of him I break down.
i have lost relatives, a parent yet this still seems harder in some ways.
I had my dog from a puppy before I had my children and I feel so lost without him.
its got to the point I can’t bare being in my house as I see him everywhere
when will it get better :(

You only lost him in April and he's been a huge part of your life - the main constant really of being an adult. My girl died aged 16 two years ago and I miss her every day. I can now look at photos of her and mostly enjoy reminiscing. But seeing the breed of dog she was reactive to still makes my heart race in anticipation of her kicking off!

I’m so sorry. April is still very recent, give yourself time.

We lost one of our dogs 4 years ago very unexpectedly. I was a mess for the first 6 months, couldn’t look at photos without crying, couldn’t speak about him as I’d just break down crying. I remember saying that I didn’t think I’d ever feel ok or properly enjoy something ever again, the grief was unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. I just wanted to feel better, be able to sleep, be able to wake up when I did sleep without feeling depressed, but at the same time I didn’t want to not think about him. We have other dogs which in some ways helped but in some ways made it worse.

I started to make myself do more just so I didn't have as much time to think all day, life took over I suppose and I did start to feel ok again and I could talk briefly about him without crying after about 6 months. 4 years on, I still miss him and still cry sometimes, but for a long time now I have mostly smiled when I think of him and watch videos of him. We still talk about him at least weekly. He was part of the family and always will be.

Do you have any family or friends to talk to about how you’re feeling? There are also some free services that provide pet loss support if you google and think they might help. Obviously talk here too as lots of us will understand how devastating it can be. Talk to your GP if your feelings are becoming overwhelming.

He was by your side for such a long time, through lots of events and life changes I imagine, so it’s a huge thing to not have him there with you and it’s only been a few months. Give yourself time.

Thank you both, I realise it’s still quite soon, just feels like people expect me to be over it, if I do mention him to friends etc they look at me like I’m mad which makes me feel worse.
he was an amazing dog and friend, I will miss him forever

I'm going through the same experience. I lost my beautiful girl in February in a truly horrific accident which I witnessed . I'm still having flashbacks and miss her every day. Sending hugs

I still miss dogs I lost more than 20 years ago, so I understand 💔 For me, my other dogs have always got me through. I’ve never had only one (because I know I absolutely would not cope when they died) I’ve always had multiples. They are absolutely in no way a replacement, because all dogs are unique. I have no doubt you could write on here for hours about your lovely dog and the things that they did that made them special and all the reasons you miss them in particular. But, perhaps another dog would bring you some comfort? Not as a replacement but as another soul to love? I know it’s not for everyone but for me, it helps. And all mine are rescue. They would absolutely want me to offer their place to another needy doggo.

I definitely experienced this from a couple of people. I didn’t go to a family meal about 3 months after we lost our dog because I couldn’t face it. One because I didn’t feel like socialising, and two, because I knew if I got upset at it, certain people would say insensitive things insinuating that I should be over it by now.

Don’t be pressured into thinking that you should be fine. Your feelings are your feelings. I actually feel sorry for those people that they have never known the deep bond that there can be between a human and an animal. If they don’t understand it, that isn’t your problem. Just concentrate on yourself. Grief is different for everyone and if they’re judging yours, they are being unkind. I totally understand how you feel and feel the same. I have friends who get it too as they’ve felt the same as we do. As shit as it feels that we lost our dogs, I think we are lucky to have loved them so deeply.