The Cornell University Hospital for Animals (CUHA) recently started a virtual support group for people who have lost a pet. 

“He was a very laid-back, easy-going guy. I always called him my lazy moose because he would have to lay down and take a nap whenever we want for a walk,” said Anita Moller, who recently lost her dog, Bruce Wesley, to cancer.

Moller says those final months with him were emotional, but the support from the Cornell University Hospital for Animals gave her strength. 

“[It] just made me feel better about all of the care that he got and helped me to feel better about the grief that I was feeling because they understood it and understood that connection that I had with him,” said Moller. 

Moller has been able to participate in the clinic’s new virtual pet loss support group. 

“We provide support and condolences to and bereavement time to folks who have lost human family members,” said Stephanie Coco, a veterinary social worker at the Cornell University Hospital for Animals who launched this support group back in November. "Society just doesn’t treat pet loss the same way. We’re making strides in re right direction and I hope that this support group is one of those interventions that we can implement to help people."

“This is a service that we can provide that people actually want and they want to tap into that," Coco continued. "They want to connect with others who’ve gone through the loss and people that they feel like they can share openly with, without a fear of judgement. And also is a place where we can normalize the grief that they’re experiencing."

Currently, the support group is for pets who were patients at Cornell’s veterinary clinic, but Coco says seeing how great the need is, she wants to look at expanding. 

“It’s been very, very helpful," Moller said. "I’ve had pets my whole life and I’ve had pets that I was very very close with and didn’t have the opportunity to have a support group to work through some of that. So, I can really feel how that’s made a big difference for me."

She said she is thankful for an amazing eight years with her beloved Bruce Wesley and the lives he touched. 

“He lived a very very charmed and spoiled life, but he deserved every bit of it,” said Moller. 

Grieving pet owners can also turn to CUHA’s Pet Loss Support Hotline, even if their animal wasn’t a CUHA patient.