Lose the family dog, never grieve alone
Do people respond differently to different kinds of deaths?
Is it easier to offer comfort to someone grieving the loss of a pet than someone grieving the loss of a human? Are people more comfortable with pet-inspired grief than with people-inspired grief?
When someone you love dies, especially if it's the shocking taken-too-soon death, nobody knows what to say. There's a lot of apologizing for your unspeakable loss and offers of "if there's anything I can do." These are all genuine and appreciated responses, of course. But everybody stumbles and mumbles around it. They don't want to make you cry or say something in advertently insensitive or wrong. They want to delicately indicate their support and sadness, and then let you decide what you want to do with it. And you're so fogged up in the shroud of grief you have no idea what to do or say. You spend most of your days just trying to stay upright.
