The Heart That Is Loved Never Forgets: Recovering from Loss: When Humans and Animals Lose Their Companions

This book was a literal life-line for me. I am very grateful that the little book store in my neighborhood happened to have this particular book available just hours after I had my beloved cat put down under unusually urgent and traumatic circumstances. I could not have imagined there being such a book, so full of feeling and understanding, so articulate and wise and gentle, about pets and pet loss. The author speaks from the heart with courage and sensitivity. This book literally was like a healing balm. It got me through. Immediately I called my vet to suggest that they have it in stock for pet owners, as well as the little book store I got it from to make sure they ordered another since I took the last copy (I couldn't stand the thought of depriving another mouring pet owner of the comfort I received from reading this book.) I don't know what I would've done without having come across this truly original and heart-mending book.

I actually lost my copy of this book, and I've added it to my wish list so I can replace it. The book is written in anecdotal format; the author uses case studies from her practice to demonstrate how particular remedies are used in particular cases of grief/shock. You don't have to be a Ph.D. or a hugely experienced homeopath to use this book. Over the years I have used recommendation from this book to help animals recover from the death of their owners and abandonment in shelters. My most recent rescue--a cat who had been surrendered to a shelter when his former owner became too sick to take care of him, almost died while in the shelter (from illness and a broken heart), found a home and then was kicked back to the shelter due to behavior issues, and finally moved into my house, where he lives happily and peacefully with my two older cats--benefited profoundly from the advice given in this book. Only yesterday I was able to use information I remembered from this book to help a baby goat whose mother orphaned him. If you are looking for a book to help YOU recover from pet loss, this book isn't for you. There are numerous books on the market to help humans recover from pet loss. This book is designed for you to help your animal companion cope with his or her grief and emotional turmoil after losing a beloved human or animal friend. One word of caution: The author (and I) believe that animals have souls and feelings--NOT that animals are people in fur suits, but that animals have feelings which they manifest in their own way unique to their species. If this approach to animal welfare is too "woo woo" for you, you may want to give this book a miss. But if you are interested in homeopathy and you sense that your animal is depressed or otherwise traumatized by a loss, this book will be a great reference tool. Shelter workers and animal "foster carers" could benefit from this book, too.

I am a volunteer foster mom for kittens and cats, having had about 200 animals adopted.I deal with animal loss-I have to deal with cats I raised in my home and personally feel the loss and adopters who call me in tears and are very distresses. I recommend this book-probably because it doesn't have poetry and stories that move readers to tears, I find people can read that their feelings of loss are very valid and extremely personal-and it helps. I am not a professional but I am asked for help when an animal is ill or passed away and this book is short enough that readers will stay with it. The homeopathic part of this book is not for everyone-probably only a small portion of animal owners.But I followed some suggestions and as they say "It can't hurt to try!"