I guess I don't understand why people with kids are offended if someone says losing a pet feels like losing their child. They are speaking of their own feelings, not yours. So who cares?
I would imagine that to people who have actually lost a child, that comparison might feel like minimizing their grief. That obviously doesn't apply to all people with kids, though.
If a person who lost a pet says this to someone who lost a child, then they deserve to be punched in the face. But some random "I'm so devastated. Sparky was like a child to me" comment seems fairly innocuous.
If a person who lost a pet says this to someone who lost a child, then they deserve to be punched in the face. But some random "I'm so devastated. Sparky was like a child to me" comment seems fairly innocuous.
Exactly. I have seen, literally, thousands of grieving pet parents. Some have barely batted an eye, some have collapsed on the floor wailing. To some people it IS the same as losing a child. Side eye it if you want, but instead, maybe show some compassion for someone who has a different perspective on their pets than you do.
I have neither a child nor a pet, but don't most people expect to outlive their children but not their pets? Of course parents who lose children grieve for years and it sometimes ends marriages. Do people who lose pets have the same experience?
(I am not being snarky, seriously asking. I haven't encountered that myself.)
I just got back here, but I would like to clarify I did NOT minimize my aunt's grief and I have lost 2 very dear pets and understand how devastating it is. I just think it is nowhere near what I would assume is the much, much, much more horrific loss of a child. I understand the pet is their "baby" or whatever - I have been there. But it's not the same and I do think it's silly to imply that it is.
I guess I don't understand why people with kids are offended if someone says losing a pet feels like losing their child. They are speaking of their own feelings, not yours. So who cares?
I am offended because I watched a friend grieve the loss of her son and it's absofuckinglutely nothing like a dead dog, that's why. Even saying so is stupid and insulting.
I saw what my aunt and uncle went through when my cousin died and I really have to agree here. The comparison is offensive.
A coworker of mine took 2 weeks off of work because her dog died. She has no kids (in her 40s), and her dog was her life. She tried to come into work a week after and she would literally burst into tears at moments. She was greiving like that dog was her child, and just because YOU don't see them as the same thing, doesn't mean others don't.
I am offended because I watched a friend grieve the loss of her son and it's absofuckinglutely nothing like a dead dog, that's why. Even saying so is stupid and insulting.
I saw what my aunt and uncle went through when my cousin died and I really have to agree here. The comparison is offensive.
I have also had friends/family lose children; and it doesn't even belong in the same conversation as losing a pet. It just DOESNT.
And this is from someone who had to take a few sick days when my cat died. I get that grief from pets can be real and intense. But the heartache won't last a LIFETIME, which is precisely what happens when a child dies.
Rude. My DD and my dog are totally into the same things right now: eating stuff off the floor, following me around the house, looking out the window, leaving toys everywhere. Dog/kid comparisons can be totally valid.
This post is veering off into the absurd. When people lose a pet they often say it feels like losing a member of the family. "It feels like I've lost a child" is not that different a statement. It doesn't actually mean they are making a direct comparison between the two. Christ, let the pet owners grieve.