I am very sorry your husbands family did not rally their support but like others suggested they just might have not known what to say. it's true some people just don't get how important our pets are to us. Years ago I knew this guy and since he knew how important my dog was to me he tells me this story about how he was trying to be funny so he sent a card to a friend that had just lost his elderly cat, he said he was amazed that his friend told him how much the card meant to him, he was flabbergasted because he could not believe that someone would take a symphathy card for a cat seriously.
On the other end of the spectrum I live on a small lake and our community is very tight and social plus a ton of us are dog people. When I lost my Kirby suddenly about three years ago, many neighbors dropped off cards and plants in memory of him. I thought that was very sweet but I also told everyone not to bring it up in public because I could just not talk about it at the time. I have two neighbors that have dogs that are failing and I know I will be dropping a card and perhaps a plant off when the time comes. One of the single guys on the lake lost his yellow lab that was as close to him as any child would be, he sent an email out about his loss and asked everyone to share any stories they had about her, it was very touching to read his tribute.
This thread should point out that it is important to acknowledge the loss of a friends pet with at least a card. |