Parents may think that a child's pet can easily come and go into their child's life. It was then explained that a death of a pet can significantly impact the child's mental, physical and emotional well-being.
In context with the blog published on the popular e-magazine, The Parents, the author describes the condition of his kids or children when their 14-year-old pet passed away. He describes that his children were more than hurt. Before seeing his children's response, the author admits that he had absolutely no idea how on passing away of the pet, the kids would react. The incident effected all the kids differently.
It was stated that the couple's eldest child consistently cries, the middle one, however, expressed her grief through anger, and the youngest one, who was way too young to understand what was happening, but did surely understand that something was wrong was disturbed as well.
However, the author didn't know how to handle his children and their reaction.A study done at Canisius College did help him sort this out. The study was based on how the children react when a pet dies or how they take it. Children has the capacity to treat their pet not only as an animal but as an additional family member.
Joshua J.Russell, Ph.D, provided more information on this. He told that kids take the pets as their siblings. The kids were surely attached with the pet, that's why it was so hard to get over the death of the pet.
Joshua's interviews that he did with kids aged between 6 and 13, did prove that the kids do understand that the pets have a very short life span. But the way the author&'s kid reacted was surprising the author, as their dog was 14 years old.
However, was not able to mention that kids described the passing of their pets as unfair and very disturbing. Russell described that if the a new pet is added to the family, then the loss can somehow be compensated.
The author concludes by saying that, the loss of a pet is too hard to take and
admit. Whether it's kids or an adult, it hurts equally to both. And both have the
suffering, but the kids' reaction more intense and different.
