Grief Support

• The HHHHHM Quality of Life Scale — https://www.merckvetmanual.com/multimedia/table/hhhhhmm-quality-of-life-scale (opens in a new tab)
• How Will I Know? Assessing Quality of Life and Making Difficulty Decisions for Your Pet — The Ohio State Veterinary Medical Center — View PDF (opens in a new tab)
• Pain Scale for Cats — View PDF (opens in a new tab)
• Pain Scale for Dogs — View PDF (opens in a new tab)
• Telehealth Consultation with Dr. Dawnetta Woodruff — https://petsatrest.vet/st-louis-mo-veterinary-services/ (opens in a new tab)

• Chicago Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) — https://www.chicagovma.org/pet-loss-support/ (opens in a new tab)
  The Pet Loss Helpline (630-325-1600) is a free service for grieving pet owners. Trained volunteers retrieve messages and then call to offer support by active listening as well as providing printed materials and referrals when needed.
• Wings Pet Loss Support Group — Wings hosts a Zoom Meeting on the first Wednesday of every month from 7:30–9:00 pm. Email Dr. Linda Harper at linda@drlindaharper.com (opens in a new tab) by 6:00 pm on the same night of the Zoom Wings meeting to receive an invitation and instructions on how to enter the meeting.
• Veterinary Specialty Center — https://www.vetspecialty.com/pet-owners/client-counseling-services/ (opens in a new tab)
  Veterinary Specialty Center is proud to offer the services of an in-house licensed clinical social worker to help pet parents who are grieving the loss of a pet. Email or call John Mysz (847-499-5776, jmysz@vetspecialty.com (opens in a new tab)) for more information about individual or group grief support available in person, via Zoom, or by phone.
• PAWS Chicago — https://www.pawschicago.org/events-dog-training/community-events/pet-loss-heal-support-group (opens in a new tab)
  PAWS Chicago’s HEAL (Helping Each Other Alleviate Loss) Pet Loss Support Group is facilitated by Ellie Feldmann, LCPC (Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor) and is designed to help grieving pet parents work together to deal with the difficult emotions related to losing a pet in a calm, safe, and nonjudgmental atmosphere. This pet loss support group is provided to the general public as a complimentary service. RSVP to Ellie Feldmann, LCPC, at Ellie.feldmann@realsolutions4u.net (opens in a new tab).
• Anti-Cruelty Society — https://anticruelty.org/pet-loss-support (opens in a new tab)
  Anti-Cruelty offers a free, virtual group program called “Working Through Pet Loss”. The group meets once monthly via Zoom from 6:00–7:30 pm. The group is led by trauma and grief counselor Yvette Camacho, LCPC. Once you complete your reservation, you will receive an email with the Zoom link to join the meeting.
• Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement — https://www.aplb.org (opens in a new tab)
  The APLB offers chat rooms and video support groups as well as numerous resources for grieving pet parents.
• Lap of Love — https://www.lapoflove.com/our-services/pet-loss-support#group (opens in a new tab)
  Lap of Love offers a free online support group, as well as specialty support groups for specific group needs and pet loss courses and workshops.
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline — 988 or 800-273-8255, https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org (opens in a new tab)
  You can call or go on to the website to chat or text with someone 24/7/365.

Here are some of Dr. Christie’s favorite books on pet loss and grieving. Visit https://www.aplb.org/recommended-reading/ (opens in a new tab) for more selections.

• Pet Parents: A Guide Through Unconditional Love and Grief — Colleen Ellis
• The Book of Pet Love & Loss — Sara Bader
• Goodbye, Friend: Healing Wisdom for Anyone Who Has Ever Lost a Pet — Gary Kowalski
• Going Home: Finding Peace When Pets Die — John Katz
• Good Grief: On Loving Pets, Here & Hereafter — E.B. Bartels
• When Your Pet Dies: A Guide To Mourning, Remembering, and Healing — Alan Wolfelt
• When You Lose a Beloved Pet — Joanne Fink
• The Grief Recovery Handbook for Pet Loss — Russell Friedman, Cole James, and John W. James
• When It’s Time To Say Goodbye: Preparing for the Transition of Your Beloved Pet — Angela Garner
• The Loss of a Pet — Wallace Sife
• Coping with Sorrow on the Loss of Your Pet — Moira Anderson Allen

• Griffin’s Heart: Mourning Your Pet with No Apologies — Reagan J. Pasternak
• And I Love You Still… A Thoughtful Guide and Remembrance Journal for Healing the Loss of a Pet — Julianne Corbin
• Pet Remembrance Journal & Grief Workbook — Conscious Minds Press
• Forget-Me-Not: Pet Remembrance Grief Journal & Memory Book (cat specific) — Sosha Publishing

• Lifetimes: The Beautiful Way to Explain Death to Children — Bryan Mellonie and Robert Ingpen
• Goodbye Friend: A Journey Through Pet Loss and Grieving — Owen Whitmore
• Why Did You Die?: Activities to Help Children Cope with Grief and Loss — Erika Leeuwenburgh and Ellen Goldring
• When Dinosaurs Die: A Guide to Understanding Death — Laurie Krasny Brown and Marc Brown
• I Miss You — Pat Thomas
• When Children Grieve — John W. James, Russell Friedman, and Leslie Matthews
• Talking About Death: A Dialogue between Parent and Child — Earl A. Grollman

• When a Pet Dies — Fred Rogers
• Cat Heaven — Cynthia Rylant
• Dog Heaven — Cynthia Rylant
• Tim’s Goodbye — Steven Salerno
• The Invisible Leash — Patricia Karst
• Where’s Big Dog? A Story of Loss and Love — Jessica Collins & Lisa Melamed
• The Tenth Good Thing About Barney — Judith Viorst
• Saying Goodbye to Lulu — Corinne Demas
• I’ll Always Love you — Hans Wilhelm