How do you explain the death of a family pet to a toddler?

shy bobcat · ‎04-24-2010

Dd had to put down her dog today. She was a family pet. Any suggestions on how to tell her 3 year old daughter?

JustJazzmom · ‎03-09-2010

Take this book out of the library.

☼The best place to seek God is in a garden. You can dig for him there. GBShaw☼

Elstongunn · ‎03-12-2010

There are several good articles on the web on how to explain the death of a pet to a toddler. WebMD and other sites address this issue.

Be accurate and direct. Do not use euphemisms such as "put to sleep," which could instill fear into the child of going to sleep.

These sites give good direction on how to approach the subject and any behaviors the toddler may express afterwards. Just Google "how to explain the death of a family pet to a toddler" and you'll find the sites.

Money doesn't talk; it swears. --Bob Dylan

Lila Belle · ‎01-24-2013

I think you have to be honest and use the death of a pet as a way to explain death in the simplest terms possible.

Thanks for the Mr. Rogers book link, JustJazzmom. I'm ordering that.

gazelle77 · ‎03-01-2013

Kids understand more than we give them credit for. Be honest. I tell them the story of the Rainbow Bridge and how all all pets are there happy and healthy waiting to see us again. It is a nice thought..... I like the story. No different than telling someone that so and so went to Heaven....

betteb · ‎03-09-2010

I never had to do it, but my mom used to tell us that it was time for that pet to go and be with Jesus. The pet was happy and safe and we would see that pet when it was our time to go and be with Jesus, but it would be a really, really long time until then.

It's God's job to judge the terrorists. It's our mission to arrange the meeting. U.S. Marines

PARedbird · ‎03-27-2011

If you go to www.rainbowbridge.com, you can click on "Pet Loss Grief Support" and then scroll down. In the left column, there is something there called "Helping Children Cope with the Loss of a Pet". It's nice, as when you go into it, it breaks it down by age and what to tell the child.