This advice is most appropriate for parents with children in...
Preschool and Younger
Elementary School
Middle School
High School & Beyond

Age of your child at time of loss:
7
12

What type of loss did your child experience?
Loss of a pet

Please briefly describe the loss and the emotions your child experienced.
When their beloved dog died after being hit by a car, our family was just grief stricken. The sadness seemed overwhelming.

How did you help your child deal with his or her emotions? How did you help your child regain a sense of normalcy?
First we let everyone grieve. We had a proper funeral with prayers and flowers in the backyard. We knew a funeral director who was able to get us a grave marker, and the whole family was involved in the inscription (Peaches, Beloved Friend and Protector).
After that, we concentrated on sharing Peaches Memories, usually with an emphasis on humor - how she would sleep on the couch when she thought no one was looking, how she hogged the bed at night, her way of nagging until someone let her out. We also speculated that Peaches was happily in heaven, chasing cars to her heart's content. These memories and speculations usually got everyone laughing.

Please add any additional comments or suggestions:
We did not get another dog until six months later, when we felt everyone had enough time to grieve. We were very honest with the kids about how sad we also felt and how much we missed her. And when we did get a new puppy, we were able to do so happily.