The Funeral.com Journal

Resources to help you create tributes as unique as the people (and pets) you love. Learn how engraving, photos, colors, and symbols add meaning; discover scattering rituals and at-home memorial ideas. We focus on the details that matter—because small choices can carry a lifetime of comfort.

Cultural Views on Pet Death Around the World

Cultural Views on Pet Death Around the World

When a pet dies, grief can feel raw and immediate no matter where you live. Yet the way that grief is expressed, acknowledged, or even allowed is deeply shaped by...

Healing Rituals for the First 30 Days After a Pet Dies

Healing Rituals for the First 30 Days After a Pet Dies

When a pet dies, time does not move in neat calendar blocks. The first 30 days after a pet dies can feel both endless and blurred—mornings without a familiar routine,...

Giving Away Pet Items: When to Hold On and When to Let Go

Giving Away Pet Items: When to Hold On and When to Let Go

Sometime after a pet dies, there is a quiet moment when you open the closet, or walk past the food bowl, and realize that their things are still exactly where...

How to Hold a Pet Memorial Service with Family and Friends

How to Hold a Pet Memorial Service with Family and Friends

There is a kind of silence that settles over a home after a pet dies, a silence made not only of the absence of sound, but of the absence of...

Pet Loss and Spiritual Signs: Comforting “Visits” and Symbolic Moments

Pet Loss and Spiritual Signs: Comforting “Visits” and Symbolic Moments

When a beloved dog or cat dies, the silence afterward can feel almost unreal. You might still expect to hear the familiar jingle of a collar, the thump on the...

Group Goodbyes: Including Family and Friends in a Pet's Final Moments

Group Goodbyes: Including Family and Friends in a Pet's Final Moments

When a pet is nearing the end of life, time can start to feel strangely stretched and compressed at the same moment. You may be trying to fit a lifetime...

Pet Aftercare Options Explained: Home Burial, Cemetery Burial, Cremation, and Alternatives

Pet Aftercare Options Explained: Home Burial, Cemetery Burial, Cremation, and Alternatives

When a pet dies, the first feeling is usually not practical at all. It is the silence by the food bowl, the empty spot on the couch, the way the...

Making a Memory Box for Your Pet: What to Include and Why It Helps

Making a Memory Box for Your Pet: What to Include and Why It Helps

The quiet corners of your home can feel heavier than usual when a beloved pet is gone. A collar hanging by the door, a worn-out toy tucked under the couch,...

Creating a Pet Memory Book or Photo Album: Telling Their Story One Page at a Time

Creating a Pet Memory Book or Photo Album: Telling Their Story One Page at a Time

Memories have a way of appearing when we least expect them, an unexpected pang at the sound of a paw on the floor, a vivid flash of a shared morning...

Paw Prints, Clay Prints, and Ink Prints: Creating Pet Keepsakes That Last

Paw Prints, Clay Prints, and Ink Prints: Creating Pet Keepsakes That Last

The moment a pet is gone, the emptiness is undeniable. The warmth of their body, the softness of their paws, the gentle weight of their head resting on your lap,...

Losing a Service Dog or Emotional Support Animal: A Unique Kind of Grief

Losing a Service Dog or Emotional Support Animal: A Unique Kind of Grief

Some losses leave a silence so deep, it changes the way you move through the world, losing a service dog or emotional support animal (ESA) is one of them. This...

The Loneliness of Losing a Pet When You Live Alone

The Loneliness of Losing a Pet When You Live Alone

When you live alone, a pet is never “just a pet.” They are the one who greets you at the door, the one who listens to your voice in the...

When a Pet Dies in an Accident: Trauma, Guilt, and How to Begin Healing

When a Pet Dies in an Accident: Trauma, Guilt, and How to Begin Healing

The world can change in an instant. When a pet dies suddenly in an accident, grief often hits like a shockwave. One moment, life feels ordinary; the next, everything is...

Sleeping After a Pet Dies: Why Nights Are So Hard and How to Cope

Sleeping After a Pet Dies: Why Nights Are So Hard and How to Cope

The first nights after a pet dies are often some of the longest of your life. Days can feel heavy, but nights carry a unique weight, made of silence, emptiness,...

How Soon Is “Too Soon” to Get Another Pet? Emotional Timing Explained

How Soon Is “Too Soon” to Get Another Pet? Emotional Timing Explained

The house feels quieter. The routine you built around your companion is suddenly empty. You miss the soft weight at the end of the bed, the jingle of a collar,...

Helping Your Family Agree on When to Adopt Another Pet

Helping Your Family Agree on When to Adopt Another Pet

The quiet of the house feels heavier than usual. A favorite spot on the couch sits empty. The food bowl remains untouched, and the familiar sounds of paws on the...