when a pet dies

By Karen Brown

While on vacation this summer visiting my parents, their family dog passed away midway through our trip. It was a dog my children had met and played with many times before, but since we live across the country, not a pet they interacted with regularly. When my dad called me from the vet saying they had to put the dog to sleep, my mind raced with how I was going to explain to the children (ages 2, 5 and 7) what happened to Daisy. I hopped online hoping to find some wonderful article that would help me better field their questions: “Do dogs go to heaven?”, “What happens to her body?”, “Why did she have to die?” I wanted to answer them in age-appropriate ways that wouldn’t scare them, but also wanted to be truthful about what happens when something, or someone, dies.

To my surprise, my children really didn’t ask many questions. I explained in as few words as possible that Daisy was sick and died and that she wasn’t hurting anymore. When my daughter asked if she was in heaven, I told her that I wasn’t really sure, that the Bible doesn’t really say. But that the Bible does say that heaven is a beautiful place and it has everything we need. I expected to her to press me on the question at hand, but she really didn’t. I expect I got off easy that day. They did grieve in their own ways; they all cried saying they would miss her.

My oldest wrote notes and drew pictures for her grandparents of fun times she had with their beloved pet. Earlier in the week while walking Daisy, a greyhound, the dog spotted a rabbit and took off dragging Aiden across the grass a few yards. Not funny in the moment, but certainly humorous as we recalled funny pet stories.

I know this is a subject our family will have to address again in the future, I’m certain it’s just a matter of time.

How do you answer your children’s questions about the death of a pet? How do you explain what heaven will be like and who and what will be there? I imagine we will probably not know until we get there, but in the meantime, I’ve got some curious kids to answer to.