How long to dogs grieve other pets?

[redheadbaker]

We lost our Aussie at the beginning of the month. I know that dogs can appear to grieve when other pets in the house die. It's been nearly three weeks, and our pit bull is still much more lethargic than usual, has less of an appetite, and still seems to look for her. I didn't expect it to go on this long, because while they mostly got along (they were even playful with each other when they were younger), they sort of just neutrally co-existed for the last year or so. They've been together about twelve years.  

He was recently at the vet for a checkup, had bloodwork, etc., and got a clean bill of health, so I'm pretty sure it's grief and not a health issue. 

Here are the requisite dog pics. 

Reese passed on June 4th from heart failure. 


And Carl, seen here waiting for a pancake

[mofongo]

Aw, I’m sorry for your loss, it sucks:( We lost out older dog last July, younger dog was almost 8 and had been with him since she was a puppy, he was 12. She slept more than usual, we weren’t really sure if it was grief of just her? He was def the more active/excitable of the two. We got a kitten in November and she *really* perked up. I don’t know if it was just this tiny little floof ball running around that did it? We have two other cats, but they 15/9 and very bonded. She seems happier since his arrival:) I hope your guy will be ok soon!

[m15]

Aw, I'm so sorry. We had three dogs, two adults and one puppy. When one adult died, the other adult was sad for quite a while, but really got her spunk back thanks to having a puppy around. When she died about a year later, our younger dog took a long time to get back to normal. Months I'd say. We fostered some other dogs in the meantime, but it wasn't the same for her. She was clearly happy to have other dogs around, but it wasn't the same. All is ok now, but it took way longer than I expected.

[bunnies]

I'm so sorry - Reese was a beautiful girl! If they've been together for 12 years, I'd expect Carl to grieve for quite a long time. Reese was a big part of his world, which has now totally changed. Three weeks isn't nearly long enough.

[FastHands]

One thing to note is to think about what parts of the dog's behavior could have (unbeknownst to you) been really reactionary to the other dog. Like, my girl would eat anything, wolfed down her food and then would try to get to the old man's. When he was gone, she stopped eating and we assumed it was grief. Around this same time was when the data around risks of grain-free food came out, and we switched her food. She started eating again! Since we had a *massive* unusued bag of the old stuff, we decided to mix it 50/50 so she would still get plenty of grain bht we wouldn't waste the old food..... homegirl *picked out the old kibble and left it on the floor of her kennel* and only ate the new stuff! Girlface freaking hated the food and only wolfed it as a territorial/alpha behavior!

That is not at all to say that dogs don't grieve because they definitely do, but just keep in mind that some changes may be things they start/stop doing because the dynamics are just different. Not sure if I'm making sense.

I'm sorry for the loss of your sweet baby, and I hope your other pup perks up!

[sadlebred]

I am so sorry for the loss of your sweet Reese.

[shopgirl07]

Oh, poor pumpkin! I think it’s normal that Carl is still grieving, it might take a few months. I hope he perks up soon.

[mcmel]

Just wanted to say I’m so sorry for the loss of your sweet puppy ♥️

[Pom]

I am so very sorry for your loss. Reese was a lovely Aussie.

My niece just lost her older dog and the younger terrier, had never known life at home without his older brother. He seemed very depressed for several weeks and I think it would have kept going for awhile, but she ended up adopting a rescue dog and I do think it was loneliness.

[raleighnc]

I think it can go on for a while. We lost one 17yo dog in August and the other 17yo was pacing more and eating less until (ironically) we got a hospice senior foster. The 17yo started eating more and pacing less and seems a lot calmer. And I would say that they neutrally co-existed for a long time. ❤️ I hope Carl perks up.

[followyourarrow]

I don't think 3 weeks is very long. I'd give it a couple of months before I worried.

I have two cats and lost my dog about a month ago. The cats are requiring lots of extra cuddles and just general reassurance, but I also threw in a 750 mile move a couple weeks after I lost the dog.

[icedcoffee]

Why are dogs so sweet? I'm so sorry for your loss. I hope Carl perks up soon. <3

[lucybrown]

I'm sorry for your loss. The grief can last indefinitely, particularly if they were pretty attached and/or really liked being in a multi-dog household. I grew up with two labs. When we had to put one down, the other really never got over it. He aged relatively quickly after that and seemed like a different dog until he passed 3 years later. He was okay, just quieter and less playful. He also was more dependent on us for companionship.

[Jalapeñomel]

It took Camote a good year after Miranda died to get back to her old self. I'm sorry for your loss.

[pixy0stix]

Mine usually take a couple of months to really adjust to their buddies being gone. I'm not sure Megatron ever got over the loss of Butters. They were inseparable.

[ProfessorArtNerd]

I’m so sorry for your loss.

Also- can I say how many awesome pet names you all have? Carl? Miranda? MEGATRON?!

[penelope]

I'm so sorry for your loss.

[circa1978]

I'm so sorry. It is individual in our experience. Our dog who died earlier this year was sick and slowly faded so by the end she was sleeping 95 percent of the day anyway. She died at home so our younger dog had that closure - he saw her body and was in the room when we said goodbye. Not sure if that helped but he did seem to look for her a few days and otherwise was just quieter. We got a puppy sooner than I expected and while the first two weeks were very "what is this" they are now very bonded. It really has helped us all recover in unexpected ways.

[lightbulbsun]

I'm so sorry for your loss. We lost one of my dogs last July after she'd been sick for months. We had adopted our dogs as a bonded pair and had them for 9 years at that point. It took Kiwi a while to start to get back to normal, but I can't say that she's 100% the same as before. She's a little more anxious now, and I'm not sure if that will ever get better.

[redheadbaker]

Jun 22, 2022 11:36:02 GMT -5 ProfessorArtNerd said:

I’m so sorry for your loss.

Also- can I say how many awesome pet names you all have? Carl? Miranda? MEGATRON?!

Carl was from ACCT Philly and came with that name