Bereaving the Loss of a Beloved Dog: Getting Help

TOLL FREE! PET LOSS HOTLINES

Grief Recovery Hotline
(800) 445-4808
Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm PST

The Iams Pet Loss Support Center & Hotline
(888) 332-7738 Monday thru Saturday, 8am to 8pm

College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois
C.A.R.E. Pet Loss Helpline
(877) 394-2273
http://net.cvm.uiuc.edu/CARE/
The C.A.R.E. Helpline is staffed by veterinary students who have have received training from grief counselors. They also receive supervision from a licensed psychologist.

American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) National Pet Loss Hotline
424 East 92nd St., New York, NY 10128
(800) 946-4646, 24 hours a day - use your keypad to punch in the pin number 140-7211 and then your own phone number. The call will be returned immediately.
Contact: Stephanie LaFarge, Ph.D
New York City residents may be seen in person at the ASPCA headquarters.

University of California - Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine, Pet Loss Support Hotline
(800) 565-1526
6:30pm to 9:30pm PST Monday thru Friday
Summer Hours: 6:30pm to 9:30pm PST Tuesday thru Thursday
Calls may be returned collect if no counselor is currently available.

Pet Loss Support Pet Friends
(800) 404-PETS
P.O. Box 131
Moorestown, NJ 08057-0131
Long distance calls will be returned collect.

University of Florida Pet Loss Support Hotline, Gainesville
(352) 392-4700, Ext. 4080
Staffed by University of Florida Veterinary students
Calls will be returned 7pm to 9pm EST
Website - http://neuro.vetmed.ufl.edu/alt_med/petgrief/petloss.htm
This hotline will call back anyone, anywhere, at no cost to the caller.

The Chicago Veterinary Medical Association Pet Loss Support Helpline
Emil and Mary Baukert. C/O Riser Animal Hospital, 5335 W. Touhy Ave., Skokie, IL 60077
(630) 603-3994
This Helpline was established in 1993. It provides referral materials on professional grief counseling and information packets on the areas of children & grief, euthanasia, pet loss & the elderly, and a pet loss bibliography. A volunteer will pick up voice messages and call back between 7pm and 9pm CST every evening. Long distance calls will be returned collect.

Companion Animal Association of Arizona Pet Grief Support Hotline
P.O. Box 5006, Scottsdale, AZ 85261-5006
(602) 995-5885
This helpline is operated by trained volunteers 24 hours a day. Long distance calls will be returned collect.

Delta Society Pet Loss Support Hotline
Palm Springs Network
146 Pali, Palm Springs, Ca 92264
(619) 320-3298

Michigan State University Pet Loss Support, College of Veterinary Medicine
Clinical Center, C-100 East Lansing, MI 48824
(517) 353-5064
Contact: Sally Walshaw, M.A., V.M.D.
The Hotline is staffed by veterinary student volunteers from 6:30pm to 9:30pm EST on Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays.

Tufts University Pet Loss Support Hotline
(508) 839-7966
Hours: Monday thru Friday, 6:00pm to 9:00 pm EST

Companion Animal Hospital Pet Loss Support Hotline
Box 35, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-6401
(607) 253-3932
Hours: 6:00pm to 9:00pm EST, Tuesday thru Thursday

Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine Pet Loss Support Hotline
(540) 231-8038
Hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 6:00pm to 9:00pm EST

The Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement's Chat Rooms are designed to provide a safe and supportive haven for those who have lost a beloved animal companion. Discussions are not ones for social chatting, as they are solely designated to cover topics related to pet loss and bereavement. It is important to note that while these chat rooms are caring and highly effective discussions, they should not be confused with clinical psychological counseling sessions. Rather, the focus is solely on pet bereavement. Although the tone is one of compassion and constructive supportiveness, this association cannot always regulate the variables that may arise in such an environment. In addition, advice or other considerations that are offered should not be construed as part of a professional counseling session. Those who are newly bereaved and visiting a chat room for the first time should try to come in as early as possible. In that way, more individual attention can be provided as chats can get crowded later on in the sessions.

Friday night, 8 - 10, EST. Dr. Wallace Sife, Moderator, Ellie Waldron, Co- host, and Karen Borga and Connie Starr, Assistant Hosts

Sunday afternoon, 2 - 4, EST. Sarah Robinson, Moderator, and Valerie Brideau, Assistant Host

Monday night, 8 - 10, EST. Ursula Brower, Moderator, Sarah Robinson and Laurie Koen Co-hosts, and Sue Laue, Assistant Host

Wednesday night, 8 - 10, EST. Ellie Waldron, Moderator, Gayla Stone and Deborah Norman, Assistant Hosts

Anticipatory Chat: Thursday night, 8 - 10, EST. Lois Roach, Moderator, and Jenny Wilson, Assistant Host

Dr. Sife, Ellie, and Ursula can be reached at aplb@aplb.org if you are in deep bereavement and need to communicate before their next scheduled chat time.

PET LOSS SUPPORT GROUPS & COUNSELORS

Pet Bereavement Counseling
Ste. 197, 1438 East Dixie Drive, Asheboro, NC 27203
(336) 625-1400
Contact: Judith C. Stutts, Ph.D., Licensed Professional Counselor
Dr. Judith C. Stutts specializes in pet bereavement counseling. Her doctoral research investigated depression levels of pet owners after pet loss. She is an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Companion Animal and Special Species Medicine at North Carolina State College of Veterinary Medicine.

PAW (People for Animal Welfare) Pet Loss Support group
The First Lutheran Church
3600 W. Friendly (near Holder Road), Greensboro, NC
(336) 333-0PAW
This group, which meets the 2nd Tuesday of each month, is run by professional counselors and a veterinarian is in attendance.

Tina Markoff, MSW
5 Aviemore Drive
Pinehurst, NC
Home: (919) 708-9055
Office: (910) 215-6013
Email: tmarkoff@firsthealth.org

PET LOSS CEMETERIES AND CREMATORIES

Asheville: Forever Faithful Pet Memorial Gardens & Crematorium, 110 Lyman Street, Asheville, NC 28801, (828) 281-0005, fax (828) 281-0024

Charlotte: Good Shepherd Pet Services, 704-553-0545 or 1-866-332-3738, http://www.goodshepherdpet.com/

Cherryville: Pet Heaven Cemetery & Crematory, Tryon Courthouse Rd., Cherryville, NC 28021, (704) 435-8686, http://www.petheavencemetery.com

Durham: Pet Rest Cemetery, Hwy 70E, Durham, NC 27703, (919) 596-3895

Fayetteville: Fayetteville Pet Cemetery and Cremation, Bennett Rd., Fayetteville, NC 28301, (910) 323-0650

Greensboro: Companion Animal Cremations, 712 College Road, Greensboro, NC 27410, (336) 299-6011

Havelock: Noah's Ark Pet Cemetery, 908 Lake Rd., Havelock, NC 28532-2806, (919) 447-0600

Huntersville: Charlotte Pet Cemetery, 6225 Cashion Road, Huntersville, NC 28078, (704) 875-2582

Jamestown: St. Francis Zoological Cemetery, 402 Havershire Dr., Jamestown, NC 27282, (336-887-1442

Mocksville: Farmington Pet Cemetery, 40 Wyoming Rd., Mocksville, NC. 27028-6301, (910) 998-3353

Mocksville: Wachovia Pet Cemetery, 310 Point Rd., Mocksville, NC 27028, (336) 998-4253, tennyson310@aol.com

Mooresville: Lake Norman Pet Cemetery & Crematory, 266 S. Church Street, Mooresville, NC 28115, 704-799-0391, Lakenormanpc@alltel.net

New Bern: Lynaire Crematory, 4634 Old Cherry Point Rd., New Bern, NC 28560, (252) 633-6225

Raleigh: Faithful Friends Pet Cremation, 919-874-0014

Roanoke Rapids: Creekside Pet Haven, RFD 2, Roanoke Rapids, NC 27870, (919) 535-1871

Snow Hill: Pet Haven Memorial Park, Route 4, Snow Hill, NC 28580, (252) 747-3805

Wilmington: Walden Pond Pet Cemetery, 7965 Market St., Wilmington, NC. 28405-9383, (910) 686-7224

The above resources only serve as a guide. Although I am a Nationally Certified School Psychologist published in the field of human loss and bereavement (Stress and Illness in the Family: A Linear versus Family Life Space Perspective; The Child with Cancer: A Life Space Study of Six Families), I do not have personal knowledge of the expertise of any of those persons or facilities providing these pet loss services.