tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post7069426227754697592..comments2024-02-11T21:38:42.656-08:00Comments on mulling and musing: When a Pet Dies -- Help please!m_and_mhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00552368137212513094noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-9397028855337065982009-03-09T15:50:00.000-07:002009-03-09T15:50:00.000-07:00Wow, that's quite a goldfish. A BIG one. No wonder...Wow, that's quite a goldfish. A BIG one. No wonder you felt bad, watching it sort of fade away. That's sad to see, even in a finny friend (as opposed to a furry one, I mean)!<BR/><BR/>As for burials, my family simply flushed our deceased fish down the toilet. However, it's safe to say that, had we owned a fish the size of yours, we would have buried it...because that's what we did with our lizardSusan Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16049586085703324088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-54186233024281833832009-03-03T00:33:00.000-08:002009-03-03T00:33:00.000-08:00HiI stumbled across your blog on LDS BLOGS. I tho...Hi<BR/>I stumbled across your blog on LDS BLOGS. I thought you mighe be interested in a site my wife and I just built called MormonsMadeSimple.com, which uses simple, explanatory videos to explain the Mormon faith. Feel free to feature any of these videos on your blog, or just share them with non-member friends. We're hoping these videos will be missionary tools to help members share theirAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-85675890233966703552009-02-23T12:01:00.000-08:002009-02-23T12:01:00.000-08:00SilverRain, Actually, I threw him away myself. I c...SilverRain, <BR/>Actually, I threw him away myself. I couldn't deal with dead fish in the house until morning. :)<BR/><BR/>Kat, love your ideas. We have other fishies, so I'm still listening to different ideas....m_and_mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00552368137212513094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-59522842740662717262009-02-23T09:30:00.000-08:002009-02-23T09:30:00.000-08:00sorry carpe died and so glad your kids were ok wit...sorry carpe died and so glad your kids were ok with it. i was surprised how well my kids dealt with the death of our fish. they wanted to be the one to do the flushing!Ginnyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08930191843109773211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-54332752797555133152009-02-23T06:46:00.000-08:002009-02-23T06:46:00.000-08:00I think the best thing is to let your children lea...I think the best thing is to let your children lead the disposal. Talk to them about death and mortality, and ask them how they would like to mourn the pet.<BR/><BR/>It sounds like you did just that.SilverRainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00580230961425635077noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-84250986405359019872009-02-22T23:15:00.000-08:002009-02-22T23:15:00.000-08:00Sorry I didn't see your post earlier - we just had...Sorry I didn't see your post earlier - we just had our 2nd betta fish funeral a few days ago.<BR/><BR/>Our funeral prep involves making a biodegradable "casket" (once an origami box, once a paper towel), which can be decorated. We gather natural materials from our yard and mix them (grass, flowers, lemon peel, etc.) and put some in the "casket" with the fish. Everyone writes a good-bye card, Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-78064117924630605522009-02-22T22:38:00.000-08:002009-02-22T22:38:00.000-08:00Ah, it was so nice to see some support from friend...Ah, it was so nice to see some support from friends. Thank you! <BR/><BR/>I must report that, even as attached as we all were to the fish, my kids actually handled it all a lot better than I thought they would. They woke up to see that the fish was missing, and were sad when I told them what had happened, but we were able to talk about how death was a part of life and they really seemed to m_and_mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00552368137212513094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-45088157743790686192009-02-22T17:32:00.000-08:002009-02-22T17:32:00.000-08:00Michelle,we always just flushed them. I think pets...Michelle,<BR/>we always just flushed them. I think pets are a good tool to teach kids that death and pain are just part of life.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-59491834117357964032009-02-22T13:17:00.000-08:002009-02-22T13:17:00.000-08:00I have no advice, sorry. I kind of leave the ritua...I have no advice, sorry. I kind of leave the ritual up to whatever child or children need it the most--sort of following their lead. <BR/><BR/>I don't think I will ever get over watching my daughter hold the dead body of our favorite bunny for hours and then go out in a snow storm all by herself--she is fiercely independent and wouldn't let anyone offer her comfort--and dig a grave in our flower Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-40254943255402549402009-02-22T12:37:00.000-08:002009-02-22T12:37:00.000-08:00My condolences to your family in this loss. I'm n...My condolences to your family in this loss. I'm not sure that I can say to help -- I was never that attached to my fish. I do know that pets know we love them. Since you couldn't have a funeral, maybe you can have a memorial? Put up a picture of the fish (if you have one) and everyone say a few words about why they loved the fish and that they're sad the fish is gone, they know the fish is Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-26186252259964660122009-02-22T07:17:00.000-08:002009-02-22T07:17:00.000-08:00Oh, m&m, I wish I could help! We haven't y...Oh, m&m, I wish I could help! We haven't yet had a pet die in our family (and growing up, we never had any pets). I know my husband did, though, and I remember him saying that usually they just got another pet and it would help. <BR/><BR/>Sorry I can't be more help!!Cherylhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10218614720786379961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-82466910146818572362009-02-22T04:39:00.000-08:002009-02-22T04:39:00.000-08:00It is a hard thing when a pet dies. It seems to af...It is a hard thing when a pet dies. It seems to affect some children more than others.<BR/><BR/>When our children had pets die (fish, birds, gerbils), we had already explained that their life cycle was relatively short compared to humans; so we talked again about death being a part of life, and just had a simple burial in the backyard. No ceremony, just the burial. I'm curious as to why burial Rosalie Erekson Stonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07071759091953776747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29724538.post-43298433656862640332009-02-22T04:24:00.000-08:002009-02-22T04:24:00.000-08:00Yikes. How attached to this fish were your childre...Yikes. How attached to this fish were your children?<BR/><BR/>I was 7 or 8 when my first pet, a cat, died. He'd been sick and at the vet's for a day or two. My parents brought him home and let us peek into the box so that we'd know he was really there, and we buried him under the lilac bushes. I remember how still he was, curled up in that box, and I remember crying, especially at night, for a Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com