Broken Heart, Shared Heart, Healing Heart: Navigating the Loss of Your Pet

"This book will appeal to three types of readers: people who are grieving the death of a pet, readers who know someone who has recently lost a pet, and those who are interested in the bonds between animals and humans." --Library Journal

Experiencing the death of a beloved pet can be profoundly difficult, and it can be challenging to find real support and comfort during this time. Where do you turn?

Written by Barbara Allen, creator of a groundbreaking chaplaincy program in the largest animal hospital in the southern hemisphere, Broken Heart, Shared Heart, Healing Heart acknowledges the deep pain that pet loss causes and offers gentle guidance on how to navigate this difficult time. Grounded in practical advice and research that pet owners can draw on for real help for their broken hearts, this book offers strategies for honoring loss and our own grieving process. We will also see that we are not alone in our grief and how we process it as Allen introduces us to famous people and their pets and explores how pets have been memorialized in various cultures, including through prayers, funeral and burial services, condolence cards, and mourning jewelry.

Inevitably, those experiencing the death of a pet will ask about the afterlife of animals. Will they meet their beloved companion again? Allen explores long-held teachings in religious traditions--Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, and especially her own, Christian tradition--to look for answers, comfort, and reassurance. With this holistic and useful approach, you'll find the support you need for navigating your grief, meaningful ways to memorialize your beloved pet, and the spiritual and emotional care you need during this tender time.

Barbara Allen helped develop Australia's first animal chaplaincy program at Lort Smith Animal Hospital. She is passionate about animals and about stewardship of all creation, and is the author of numerous books, including I Was There, Pigeon, Animals in Religion, and Pelican. Allen serves as an ordained minister in the Uniting Church in Australia (a Methodist/Presbyterian/Congregational merged church), and in a voluntary capacity as the grief support person for Story Dogs, a charity that uses dogs to help children become confident readers. She lives in Melbourne, Australia.