Pet Remembrance Event Planned For Parkersburg

For most of us, losing a pet is like losing a member of your family. We see pets every day, making their loss much more apparent. But many people feel they don’t get the chance to express that grief. 

“The difference is that pet loss is considered a disenfranchised grief, meaning it’s not recognized,” Nancy Weil, the outreach coordinator for the Vaughn-Kimes Funeral Home in Parkersburg, said. “You don’t get three days off work. People aren’t bringing over casseroles; you’re not getting cards in the mail, flowers being delivered. It is a different kind of loss.” 

Weil will be running a Faithful Friends Pet Remembrance Service Sunday at 2 p.m. at the funeral home. Weil is a grief counselor and runs an online grief group for people missing human loved ones.  

“So, it really comes from the fact that our heart hurts when we lose something we love,” she said. “And that, most often times is a human, a relative or a friend that we love that’s died. But it also is equally true when it’s been a beloved pet, because those pets become part of our family.” 

Weil has run pet remembrance programs in other states, but this is the first time in West Virginia.  

“There’s a need for a gathering for people who have had that kind of loss, to come together,” she said. “You don’t feel so alone. You realize other people also understand how much it hurts to lose a pet.”  

She said West Virginia has one of the highest pet ownership rates in the country. Most of those pets are cats and dogs, but people who have lost other pets are welcome with the group as well.  

“I want to be very clear when I say pet. Most people it’s a dog or a cat, but we have had people bringing photos and mourning iguanas,” she said. “Rabbits, guinea pigs, snakes, hamsters, chickens. Whatever that is, horses, my gosh. I mean, horse loss is enormous, because they live a long time and they just give differently in their soul. So, when we talk pets, I don’t want people to think it’s just if you had a dog or cat, it’s not. It’s not.” 

The event is free, but they do ask the public to call 304-485-5471 to register if possible. And bring a photo of your faithful friend, but no living pets, please.