My dog passed away this morning and it was discovered that she had lots of health issues (brain tumor + stomach cancer) that contributed to her untimely departure. Is this normal? (to find dog death due to unexpected reasons)
And how long does it usually take to move on?
p.s Do not be sorry for me, what's done is done.
Everyone deals differently with grief. My childhood dog passed away less than a year ago, it took me about a month to stop tearing up and crying at the thought of her. I am now able to look back on my dog’s life and instead of getting teary eyed, I smile, I think of all the amazing moments I shared with her, and though she may be gone, she is still with me. Grief stays with you forever, but that is one of humans greatest qualities. Grief shows that you loved and cared about what you are grieving for, it is an ode to what you have lost. Though grief may stay with you forever, you grow around that grief, until it’s a tiny little dot in your mind. The grief does not grow smaller, you grow larger. Don’t run away from the grief, accept it, it does get better.
I cannot confirm if it's usual to have a dog pass away like this since I never had a dog but I've lost cats before.
So for the moving on part, it varies from person to person. I lost my cats years ago and sometimes still cry thinking of them. However thinking that they had a happy life under your care makes the pain go away a little. Think of how many dogs suffer with brutal conditions without a home but you saved your dog from that.
I hope you're finding peace with what happened. Losing a pet sucks.
I will say it's more common than you think. Pets obviously can't communicate explicitly what they're feeling, and so something they've been fighting might come as a surprise. Furthermore, the older the pet, the more likely they'll develop health conditions. Hell, even humans sometimes don't realize they have cancer until it's too late to treat. What I do hope is that your dog lived a happy and fulfilling life and that they passed peacefully.
As for moving on -- like the others have said, everyone moves on at their own pace, but no one moves on completely -- we just grow as people. My dad is nearing 60 and still talks about his childhood dog and how much he misses him, and I imagine I'll be the same when my 12 year-old schnauzer passes too. What helps people ease their pain is the memories they've had, and that always includes pets too. Grief helps us remember who and what it is that we love.
Thank you, and I agree with a lot of what you're saying. It's morally challenging for my family to approach her death because she was only 6.5 years old, nowhere near her life expectancy of 11-14 years. Perhaps if we found out about her issues earlier we would've been even sadder than we are now. I guess she didn't want us worrying and spending more resources on her.
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