pet loss support for loving pet parents who want to feel present with their pet in their final days, create a sacred dying process, have space to process loss, & feel at peace in their choices
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read on to find resources, services, and ways to reach out to customize the support you need.
WITH RACHAEL BROOKE
There’s truly no relationship that can compare to the bond between a human and their pet.
For some, a pet is “just a pet” — but for many of us, our pets are our family. They’re our kids, confidants, comedic relief, comfort, best friends, & soul mates.
For how much joy they bring us each and every day (even when they’re being little stinkers or causing trouble…) it’s devastating beyond words to see them unhappy, hurting, or slipping away from us.
We all know that the only guarantee in life is death — and yet, it doesn’t make pet loss, or even the anticipation of losing a pet, any easier. Really, it can be by far one of the most painful experiences we can ever go through as humans.
Whether the death of your pet was sudden, unexpected, and tragic, or even if you know your pet’s life is coming to an end due to a diagnosis, illness, or old age, there’s a lot of complex feelings, emotions, and ways of grieving that can come up for loving pet-parents like us.
First of all, I want you to know and believe that ALL of these thoughts, feelings, and questions are super valid. Pet loss is a deeply personal and intimate experience that will look and feel different for everyone. We will all cope, grieve, and process the loss in different ways.
Maybe you find yourself thinking or asking questions like…
“Was there something I did wrong?”
“Is there anything I could have done better?”
“I feel so guilty that they died, it’s my fault.”
“I should have spent more time with them.”
“I wish I could just have one more day to tell them how much I love them.”
“When is the right time to let them go?”
“Were they happy? Did they feel loved? Did I give them as amazing of a life as they deserved?”
As your pet loss doula, my purpose is to hold sacred space for you and your family to process pet loss and grief — and to make sure your pet’s final days are filled with peace, love, and comfort.
If you’re preparing for pet loss & in a place of anticipatory grief, I’m here to hold space for you to process the complex emotions that loving pet-parents feel when waiting for your pet to die and the potential guilt that comes along with that.
A beautiful, sacred, and peaceful goodbye can happen just the way you want it (or as close to it as possible), and I’ll make sure you don’t have to waste precious time or energy to make it all happen.
And, if you’re on the other side of experiencing pet loss, I’m also here to support you with 1:1 sessions to hold space for your experience, emotions, and helping you feel less isolated and alone in the grieving process.
After losing both of my cats slowly within 4 months in 2021, the grief I experienced after their losses was soooo intense. I had so many mentors and helpful humans in my life during their losses: therapists, holistic & traditional vets, meditation mentors, & family who understood — and yet, the process of losing them was still so overwhelming and isolating. I'll never forget how painful it was to have to decide to help them die and to make so many end-of-life decisions. I felt like I had no idea HOW to make those decisions, or even what decisions I could make.
My physical and mental health were greatly affected through the before, during, and after of losing my animals — however, experiencing & processing their deaths also greatly strengthened my spiritual health. As much as it hurt my human body & analytical mind to watch them die, my spirit and soul KNOWS they are at peace, and I'm forever connected to them. Helping them die comfortably and peacefully was actually a beautiful process, and it can be for you, too.
No matter what your situation or experience with pet loss may be, I do know this to be true…
Pet loss CAN be sacred & beautiful — and, letting go is an act of love. As the saying goes in Buddhism, “Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.” So much of attachment and holding on leads to suffering. If we can learn to let go and not be attached to our pets, we will still be sad and miss them when they’re gone, but we won’t be stuck suffering as much, or for as long.
I also truly believe that death is NOT the end. It may not ever be a comfortable process, but knowing when our soul contracts with our pets are done, that doesn’t mean they are gone from us forever.
No matter what you believe, your pets will live on in your heart and soul forever, and that’s something NOBODY can take away from you — not even death.
This was one of the most challenging and painful things we’ve gone through, but Rachael made us feel so supported, loved, and less alone in a way that no one else could.
Losing a family member and dealing with grief is such a complex thing. Most people don’t have the right words to say or perhaps they don’t truly understand- but Rachael understands it on such a deep level from her own personal experience, and is able to support others going through it in such a beautiful way. In an emotional way, Rachael listens. Truly listens. The logistic aspects that RB provides, in addition to the emotional and spiritual, are invaluable. She helped us understand all of our options- ones we didn’t even know we had. She shares spiritual resources for those who are looking for that aspect as well. She was there for us before, during, and after and I cannot even begin to describe the immense impact this had on us.
-Jera Foster-Fell
CORE VALUES
Pet loss CAN be sacred & beautiful — and letting go is an act of love. As the saying goes in Buddhism, “Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.” So much of attachment and holding on leads to suffering. If we can learn to let go and not be attached to our pets, we will still be sad and miss them when they’re gone, but we won’t be stuck suffering as much, or for as long.
Being in the present moment. It’s super normal to experience anticipatory grief or grief that keeps you in the past. Both are important and valid, ANDDDDD we also spend so much time in locations that are not the present time, not allowing us to experience the here & now with our pets, especially in their final days. The present time is really all we have, and you deserve the support that allows you to be fully there.
The importance of honoring both the spirit & the body. The human body deals with grief intensely, and it's sooo important to nurture it as it's happening. At the same time, the spirit is also infinitely wise, and we should invite it to come out a bit more all the time, but especially in pet loss.
Death is not the end. We have soul contracts with our animals — meaning that, we've decided at some point that our animals are going to meet us here on Earth and vice versa. When our contract with each other is done, they can go — but that doesn’t mean they are gone from us forever.
MY COMMITMENT TO YOU , YOUR FAMILY, & YOUR PET
As your pet loss doula, my purpose is to hold sacred space for you & your family to process pet loss & grief — and to make sure your pet’s final days are filled with peace, love, and comfort. I am also a certified Pet Loss Grief Specialist and am available to support you and your family in the grief after your fur babe is gone.
To support you in this beautiful yet difficult journey, I promise to…
To support you in this beautiful yet difficult journey, I promise to…
- Open up more room for you, your family, and your pet to enjoy quality time together in the present moment
- Support. and your family after pet loss in navigating the grief, trauma, and everything else associated with this type of loss
- Extend peace, groundedness, & spirituality in preparation for, during, and after the loss of your pet
- Normalize the complexities of loss and the slew of emotions that comes alongside it
- Do what’s needed to ensure your pet feels as comfortable and loved as possible in their final days with you, and to alleviate the burden off your shoulders of organizing their end-of-life arrangements
- Hold your tenderness in an ethical, trauma-informed way to honor your humanity & the very real, raw emotions that come with experiencing pet loss
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For me, even though I was prepared for my cats Jeff & Gal to die, their losses still deeply affected me.
Both Jeff & Gal died slowly over a 4-month period, just months apart from one another. As a single woman, living alone away from my family, Jeff & Gal were my best friends and meant everything to me — in many ways, they saved me.
After losing them both in 2021, the grief I experienced after their losses was soooo intense. I had so many mentors and helpful humans in my life during their losses: therapists, holistic & traditional vets, meditation mentors, & family who understood — and yet, the process of losing them was still so overwhelming and isolating. I'll never forget how painful it was to have to decide to help them die and to make so many end-of-life decisions. I felt like I had no idea HOW to make those decisions, or even what decisions I could make.
My physical and mental health were greatly affected through the before, during, and after of losing Jeff & Gal — however, experiencing & processing their deaths also greatly strengthened my spiritual health. As much as it hurt my human body & analytical mind to watch them die, my spirit and soul KNOWS they are at peace, and I'm forever connected to them. Helping them die comfortably and peacefully was actually a beautiful process, and it can be for you, too.
This experience, and Jeff & Gal, are the inspiration behind why I have stepped formally into this new direction: pet loss support for grieving pet parents who want to create a peaceful, sacred experience of ushering their pets in death.
As your pet loss doula, my purpose is to hold sacred space for you and your family to process pet loss and grief — and to make sure your pet’s final days are filled with peace, love, and comfort.
I am a trained and certified Pet Loss and Bereavement practitioner and have worked with dozens of clients just in the past year alone. I devote all my time to my clients during our time together and love hearing from them after. From spreading ashes to anniversaries to bringing in new animals - I am here for you every step of the way, even after loss and the acute grief felt with it. I also have a wonderful network I can refer you to as needed.
WHY I DO THIs
RESOURCES FOR PET LOSS GRIEF
Your experience with pet loss & grief is incredibly valid and sacred, and I’d be honored to support you in this journey. Please read below.
ONE ON ONE, COUPLES, FAMILY:
These sessions can be used however you need. You can buy them as a package of 3 or book out one at a time. 1:1s are 50 minutes and we can do everything from discuss end of life care, quality of life, connection to your pets spirit, options, meditation, grounding practices, grief, and so much more.
- 1 session= sliding scale accepted between $50-175. Trades also accepted.
You will pay once we connect + confirm sessions.