Jump to content
Mental Support Community

Are pets therapeutic?


IrmaJean

Recommended Posts

Thanks for sharing, Jeep. :) I love kitties too. It's great that your cat has helped you to calm your emotions.

My daughter is working on training our beagle and my husband often spoils Willow. :P She is fun and definitely therapeutic.

I hope you continue to enjoy your kitty. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 8 months later...

We lost our beloved Willow very suddenly a week ago today. I still find my heart aching at times during the day. We all loved her so much. She was definitely therapeutic. Our family worked together to care for her and this drew us together. We took some time when we could in the afternoons to take her for a drive and walk. We enjoyed long walks together that I will miss. She had so much energy, she really kept me moving. Not only that, but we were outside connecting with nature. I shared some special time with my daughters on our walks. She loved being petted and hugged and she didn't bark. I think one reason why I hesitated so long to get another pet was not wanting to have to cope with this kind of painful loss again. That fear won't hold me back any longer. Any time we open our hearts to someone or something, we are embracing life. Our love opens us up to ourselves and it's always with us. Miss and love you, sweet Willow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, she was such a sweetheart. I still can’t look at photos of her without crying. We only had her for 22 months and we lost her very suddenly on December 11th. It happened in such an awful way (status epilepticus due to a suspected brain tumor the vet later told us) and I was left feeling helpless. I had to wait for someone to get to our house to watch my dad (who is 24 hour care) and was thus forced to watch our dog’s grand mal seizures for about 30 minutes before I could rush her to the vets. She came out of it once and she was so confused and upset. I still have a hard time getting those images out of head. She looked at me for help, but I could do nothing. Very difficult for me. I guess I am still grieving her loss. But, yes, she was definitely adorable. She loved rolling in the grass outside and that is when I took this photo.

Thanks. Crying can be cathartic.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, she was such a sweetheart. I still can’t look at photos of her without crying. We only had her for 22 months and we lost her very suddenly on December 11th. It happened in such an awful way (status epilepticus due to a suspected brain tumor the vet later told us) and I was left feeling helpless. I had to wait for someone to get to our house to watch my dad (who is 24 hour care) and was thus forced to watch our dog’s grand mal seizures for about 30 minutes before I could rush her to the vets. She came out of it once and she was so confused and upset. I still have a hard time getting those images out of head. She looked at me for help, but I could do nothing. Very difficult for me. I guess I am still grieving her loss. But, yes, she was definitely adorable. She loved rolling in the grass outside and that is when I took this photo.

Thanks. Crying can be cathartic.

My sis, and I both lost our cats (about a year ago). It's funny becasue they were bother, and sister too! The boy was really fat, kind, sweet, really big stature - he looked like garfield, and he loved ot have to tummy rubbed. The girl was rough, and tough, and adventorus. The sister was mine, and the brother was my sister's.

The girl died of liver failure, I felt bad beucase i knew smoething was wrong, but had no money to take care of her. he put her down. the sad thing was she was so happy to see me, and thought we were going home. anyway I satyed with her while they put her down .

The boy cat deterated after his sister died, and he died sortly after.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm sorry about your kitties, dvn. There may not have been much the vet could do for her if she had liver failure. Sad that her brother died shortly after. :(

We stayed with Willow, too, my girls and I, when the vet put her down. She was heavily sedated, though, so I'm not sure she knew we were there. I gave the girls a choice and they wanted to see her and be with her. Maybe she heard us talking to her. I hope so. At any rate, it helped us to be able to talk to her and hug her.

Yesterday I noticed my husband looking online at dogs up for adoption. I had thought maybe a cat would be easier right now with everything that is going on, but still thinking on that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Our family is adopting 2 new rescue dogs today! :) It is a trial adoption for a period of 3 weeks. If all goes well after that time period, they'll be ours. We visited with 2 dogs and couldn't decide on choosing just one, so we are going to try with both. I'm cautiously optimistic that this will work out. We can always add a cat later too perhaps. :-) The dogs were rescued from a puppy mill out of state, and they have been looking for homes for 9 months now. We leave in about 30 minutes to pick them up! :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...
  • 1 month later...

Walking with my dogs is very therapeutic. When the dogs are walking beautifully and both appear so free and content, I feel free and content too. I feel confident and capable as I lead them along the path ahead. Confidence is a new feeling for me and I enjoy connecting with that energy. I feel connected to myself, to my pups, and to the surrounding nature when I'm walking. My anxiety lifts and I feel emotionally recharged. It offers me moments to feel all that is good. The physical exertion also releases any stress I may have been feeling. It's hard to describe really, but there is nothing like seeing a happily panting dog, especially when I know these two pups have suffered in the past. It gives me hope that we can make the world a kinder place, for all living creatures.

c3fbb4d0-190e-40b4-be8a-4148cf00fde4.jpg?t=1401253740

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...