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

Age of your child at time of loss:
2

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

Please briefly describe the loss and the emotions your child experienced.
We had a lovely grey kitty named Bonnie. She had kidney trouble, and progressive blindness (bumping into walls), eventually would not eat a bite of her special prescription diet, and was the cat equivalent of "incontinent." I had recently dealt with the loss of a family member. My daughter was of a very labor-intensive age, and my husband was out to sea with the Navy. Taking the cat in the car for that "Last Mile" was no picnic, but it was time to let go.

How did you help your child deal with his or her emotions? How did you help your child regain a sense of normalcy?
I told my daughter that Bonnie had lived a very long time, she was old and sick, and she had gone to Kitty Heaven ... which led to some discussion about Afterlife, but not much, since preschoolers can't fathom the depth of this. She said "OK ... can I have a cookie now?" and went off to play, but when days went by, and she noticed Bonnie was truly gone, she cried at bedtime, and needed soothing. Within a few weeks or months, we had another cat, but Elvira found us and needed us; we didn't seek her. It then did my daughter good to know that this new, half grown and Very hungry cat needed her love.

Please add any additional comments or suggestions:
I was grieving the cat's loss myself; if I had explained euthanasia of pets to my child, she would have been horrified. But when she was several years older, I could explain more fully, and she did understand.

My husband loved the cat, too. I would have loved to have been able to wait to deal with the issue, but my sanity was at stake, not to mention the household environment. I dealt with this decisively on my own because I could not wait months! I paid a price for it; when my husband got home, he was rather upset about the cat, and I understand why. But I was on the on-duty parent at home, 24/7, and had to make judgement calls as I saw 'em. He had not yet lost any People he held dear in his life, and hadn't yet formed an ability to put it in perspective. It was also hard not to be "included" in the process.

Sometimes there is just no perfect way to react, but decisions are called for. That cat was a Sweetie, and there will never be another exactly like her!