Grieving Dogs

[Dusty'sMom]

Can anyone tell me if dogs grieve for one another? If that is the case, what are the typical signs and what can I do to help them through it?

[lizbud]

Dusty's Mom,

In order; Yes dogs can grieve for a 'missed friend'.
Signs can be not eating, not being active, or just
mopeing around, or wanting to go off by themselves
alone somewhere ,and sometimes pacing or whineing.
What can you do ? Not much I think. Maybe getting
another younger dog for company after a week or two.

Is this something you are seeing with a dog now ?
They can be so pitiful looking, and it hurts the heart
to see them go through the grieving process. Dogs
can get past the sadness with time...

[nsweezie]

I think that dogs are like humans when they grieve. They can be so sad.
My sister's dog Pugsley was like that when one of our cats died. Puglsey was quite fond of the Chelsea the cat, and when Chelsea died, she was so upset. She was off her food (and this is a dog that LOVES to eat). It took her a while but she did get over it.

[anna_66]

Our Angus grieved alot after the death of our Chow,Keisha. He laid around & did nothing. Wouldn't eat, didn't even want to be in the same room with us. Our puppy helped, but he hasn't been the same since. We also have a friend, & her dog had to be put on medication for the same thing! Guess it all depends on the dog.

[Dusty'sMom]

Thank you for replying everyone. That is what I thought but I've never had more than one dog before and I've never had to go through this, so I just wasn't sure. I had to have my boy put to sleep and I thought having the others see him afterward was the right thing to do so they would know he's not coming back but now I think I've just traumatized one of my girls. She started panting heavily that night and whining and basically not acting like herself. I've decided to take her to the vet tomorrow to make sure she's physically healthy. I've been taking her for more walks and engaging her in more play to keep her mind off of him and that seems to be helping a lot, so I'm sure she'll come out of it. Thanks again for all your help.

[sweet_stormy]

Dusty'sMom,
My dog Snowball did that after me and my family came back from PA. We got home and I wanted to play with my little baby Stormy. She was only about 6 months old then. When we got in side we were looking for them. We couldnt find them. I was so upset. My mom was talking to my aunt and my aunt is like "O. Maybe they got stuck in the air vents and died." I was so upset with her. Me and my brother were so upset that Smokey and Stormy werent here. The next day we went around calling their names. We even asked people if they saw our little kitties. They all said no. Then we asked my moms old friend who is not her friend anymore and she said "Ya. The kids Im watching today have two new kittens." so we went and got our cats back. Before we went looking for them Snowball wouldnt eat her food. She was so sad. She laid down and didnt move to even go out side. She looked so sad. When we got the cats back Snowball was so happy she was chasing them and nipping at them. But in a playful way. She was sssssooooo happy. She acts like their mother.

[Mary Mc]

I used to have two little dogs, one a Maltese who was a female and the other whoes breed is unknown who was a male. They were very close in all ways ;)

one day when I came home from school, I found My poor Maltese in an Alley way near the house. It seemed that she escaped under the gate whcih was unusual from the 6 years we had her, she never escaped. She was attacked by other dogs that we thought were the grey hounds we sometimes see around the place. Dont get me wrong they are great dogs and i dont have proof against them.

Tiger was very upset about this, he would just want to sleep all day and not play, he didnt eat all his dinner and he would just hang around. He eventually got over it with alot of TLC from all of us. Just two years ago we got another puppy, name charlie who is a border collie, they get along brilliantly, tiger is up to his usual tricks about sneeking food, and he boses Charlie around.
just give them time, and if they are really lonely consider getting them a friend :)

[lovemymaltese]

Yes, dogs do grieve. Not just for a animals, but for humans as well. My granfather died two weeks ago and his dog is not the same. She doesn't eat, and she wants to be outside alone. I feel that she will come around, it's just her way of coping with the loss. It's hard for animals to understand when someone isn't there anymore. It's important to get the dog back into a regular routine.