Would you post your dog's obituary in the newspaper?

[kiya]

If it were a separate section for "pets" ok, but seriously why bother, I don't even want an obit for myself.
We have a pet cematary that made the news when people discovered they were not doing what they claimed. It has since changed hands with new management, still wouldn't trust that it was 100% of "Fluffy's" remains.
There was a story on the news, I don't remember which pet cematary it was but now the pets human can be laid to rest with the pet. I believe you would have to be cremated not buried.

[selzer]

Life used to be simpler.
Before the days when people bought tu tus for their puttie wittle doggies.
And people dug a hole in the back yard
And buried the dog.
The grass grew.
The puppy dog wagged its tail.
We were all sad.

Now we want to put obituaries in the paper about our loss of our dog.
And buy a plot in a cemetary for pets.
And show the world how much we loved our dog.
And how we will spend money on his remains.
And how we are hurting.

And pretty soon it will become the norm.
And they will make laws about burying Fido in the earth.
And we will have to pay for cremation or burial.
And Halmark will set up a line of greeting cards.
And people will be expected to read death notices.
And send flowers and cards.
And someone will ask the clergyman to come
And perform a wake.

It is a dog. I love my dogs. But when they are gone, they are gone. And what remains is a shell, not my dog. Their spirit is gone. My dog is running free on a field somewhere not hindered by the polluted earth and the aging that live bodies must endure.

Why would I want to plant the remains in the polluted earth next to other dogs' remains?
Why would I want to put their name and vital statistics in the paper?
I should not need to show the world how much I loved my dog. The world doesn't care, nor do they matter. I guess I will just show my dogs how much I love them and let the world fend for themselves.

[kiya]

Originally Posted by selzer

Now we want to put obituaries in the paper about our loss of our dog.
And buy a plot in a cemetary for pets.
And show the world how much we loved our dog.
And how we will spend money on his remains.
And how we are hurting.

And pretty soon it will become the norm.
And they will make laws about burying Fido in the earth.
And we will have to pay for cremation or burial.
And Halmark will set up a line of greeting cards.
And people will be expected to read death notices.
And send flowers and cards.
And someone will ask the clergyman to come
And perform a wake.

There are tons of sympathy cards for loss of pet. I do appreciate getting them from the vet and close friends. I do give them to someone if I know they feel the same for their animals that I do and not "just a dog".

[msvette2u]

We have a pet cematary that made the news when people discovered they were not doing what they claimed.

Hey this happens with people mortuaries and cemeteries!! Let alone pet ones.

I think we should spend more on our pets while alive, than after they're dead and gone.

[Freestep]

Originally Posted by selzer

Now we want to put obituaries in the paper about our loss of our dog.
And buy a plot in a cemetary for pets.
And show the world how much we loved our dog.
And how we will spend money on his remains.
And how we are hurting.

It does seem odd to publicize your own pet's death. I personally don't think the public needs to know that much about my personal life, nor would I assume that they care. But maybe some people want the attention, I don't know. I don't even want my own obituary or funeral service, so I might be the odd one.

It is a dog. I love my dogs. But when they are gone, they are gone. And what remains is a shell, not my dog. Their spirit is gone. My dog is running free on a field somewhere not hindered by the polluted earth and the aging that live bodies must endure.

That's pretty much how I feel about it. I don't buy cemetary plots, or keep my pet's ashes, or anything like that--I let them go to the rendering plant. They are no longer in their bodies, so what happens to them after death is pretty much moot. It all cycles back eventually no matter what.

[selzer]

Originally Posted by kiya

There are tons of sympathy cards for loss of pet. I do appreciate getting them from the vet and close friends. I do give them to someone if I know they feel the same for their animals that I do and not "just a dog".

They are not "just a dog."
No, they are dogs.

To equate them to humans is unfair
to the dogs.

They are not "just a dog."
But explaining that properly
to someone that matters
can't be done in a cutesy card.

And if they matter, they already know.

Why give Hallmark and the florist a cut from your grief.

It's a racket. It is all a racket. Pet cemetaries are a racket. Greeting cards are a racket. Pet food is a racket. The whole pet industry has people cashing in, and I do not mean breeders. I mean people selling you GSD 24 food, and people selling greeting cards, and people selling flea-preventives, and people selling tu-tus. People will spend money on their pets. And people will take them to the bank. It is funny how so many do not want to pay up front for the breeding and everything that goes into breeding a quality litter. But they will buy, buy, buy, buy, buy every foul stupid item under the sun that no dog needs, and probably shouldn't have. DNA, six or seven generation pedigrees, raincoats, and so much more.

I wish people would invest in their dog, invest in training their dog, feed sensibly, vet care when needed, and treat the dog like a dog.

[Nico Pico]

When my dog died suddenly of cancer, I notified family & friends by phone, & posted on FB for my acquaintances. I also made some donations in her memory, to various associations that helped dogs.

[msvette2u]

Yeah there's a difference between lowering the pet's value to "just a dog" and overblowing it to the status of a human, there's a happy medium there somewhere.

[wyominggrandma]

Selzer, I totally agree with your last post.
It amazes me how much money people will spend on all the things a dog "needs"... Or at least what the owners have been taught they need.
My dogs could care less if their collars are from the most expensive store in the country with diamonds, or a collar from Walmart. They both get lost or chewed up the same. Having been in dogs for so darn many years and seen so many different changes happen, it blows my mind to see how people are willing to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars of things they think their dogs can't live without...
I feed Natures Recipe: $38 for 35 lbs. My dogs do well on it, have beautiful coats, do not scratch and have small stools. Works for us and I don't have to take out a loan to buy dog food. I use Ivermectin for heartworm, tired of paying $55-60 for six months worth of chewable tablets.
If it came down to starving my family or feeding my dog a good food, they would have to eat Purina Dog chow before I would lose my home.
I love my dogs/cats/horses, but they are animals, pure and simple.
And to the thought of putting an obituary in the paper for the loss of my dog, I would not do that, would not even think about it. Facebook to my friends/family, but the public could care less that my dog died. I also agree about a pet obit being next to a person. Should not be done.
A friend of my husbands was just killed in a roll over accident.(drinking and no seatbelt, he was thrown out) He was married, had a wife, kids, parents, brothers and sisters. When I read the obituary, I was mortified. A family friend had written it and the first thing that was put in in the "left behind" section was : His faithful dog, Buddy... His DOG.. How insulting to the wife and kids. They were mentioned after the dog....

[selzer]

Wow, they mentioned the dog first and then the wife and kids? That is sad.

I can see my family, because of how much a part of my life my critters are, mentioning it toward the end of the obit. Like, after mentioning the survivors, and the high points of my life, put in a line about how she loved her dogs, dog training, and showing or something like that. It is part of who I am. A piece of the pie. And if they want to mention that donations can be made to such and such dog rescue, fine. No problem with that.

But putting my dogs up with the survivors -- no, sorry. One thing I can guaranty, my dogs won't feel slighted the least bit by being mentioned down where they belong with my work or hobbies.