Parents’ Experiences and Challenges in Communicating Pet Loss to Their Children

The loss of a companion animal can deeply affect both children and parents, often resulting in a form of grief that is overlooked by society. This research explored parents’ experiences in communicating the loss of a companion animal to their children and in understanding their children’s adaptation to the loss. Using a qualitative methodological framework, the study involved 28 semi-structured interviews with parents. A thematic analysis revealed three themes: “Communication and explanation,” “After death children’s representations and grieving reactions,” and “Children’s adaptation and integration of death and grief.” The findings reveal that parents often struggle to distinguish between sharing clear communication and providing explanations about death, sometimes omitting significant details in their narratives and feeling insincere. Children’s representations of death ranged from transcendental, narrative-based motifs to more pragmatic perspectives, revealing profound implications for their adaptation and understanding of death. Finally, children’s adaptation and integration of the experience of death were characterized by the development of new awareness, caring behaviors, and learning about the concept of mortality. This study provides unique insights into how parents can navigate communication challenges, offering practical frameworks for supporting children’s emotional and cognitive development after companion animal loss.