Inspirational Death of a Pet Quotes: A Heartfelt Collection to Comfort and Heal

"Honor your grief and the pain you feel when you lose a beloved pet. It is the first step toward healing."

- Karen A. Anderson

"Grief is the price we pay for love."

- Queen Elizabeth II

"What we have once enjoyed, we can never lose; All that we love deeply becomes a part of us."

- Helen Keller

"How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard."

- A.A. Milne

"Death ends a life, not a relationship."

- Mitch Albom, Tuesdays with Morrie

"Don't cry Because it's over, be happy because it happened"

- Dr. Suess

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

- Dr. Seuss

"Like a bird singing in the rain, let grateful memories survive in times of sorrow."

- Robert Louis Stevenson

"Heaven goes by favour. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in."

- Mark Twain

"Don’t cry because it is over; smile because it happened."

- Dr. Seuss

"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened."

- Anatole France

"Grief is the price we pay for love"

- Queen Elizabeth II

"The risk of love is loss, and the price of loss is grief. But the pain of grief is only a shadow when compared with the pain of never risking love."

- Hilary Stanton Zunin

"If having a soul means being able to feel love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals are better off than a lot of humans."

- James Herriot

"What we have once enjoyed we can never lose; all that we have loved deeply, becomes a part of us."

- Helen Keller

"Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart."

- Winnie the Pooh

"Dogs come into our lives to teach us about love, they depart to teach us about loss."

- Erica Jong

"A new dog never replaces an old dog, it merely expands the heart. If you have loved many dogs your heart is very big."

- Erica Jong

"Such short little lives our pets have to spend with us, and they spend most of it waiting for us to come home each day."

- John Grogan

"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal."

- From a headstone in Ireland

"There are no goodbyes for us. Wherever you are, you will always be in my heart."

- Mahatma Gandhi

"You will always be my favourite hello and hardest goodbye."

- Cecelia Ahren

"The bond between a pet and a human is a sacred one, and when a pet is gone, a part of us goes with them."

- James Herriot

"Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole."

- Roger Caras

"If there are no dogs in heaven, then when I die, I want to go where they went."

- Will Rogers

"Grief is like the ocean; it comes on waves ebbing and flowing. Sometimes the water is calm, and sometimes it is overwhelming. All we can do is learn to swim."

- Vicki Harrison

"Everyone is taught that angels have wings. The lucky ones of us find that they have four paws."

- Jury Nel

"If there is a heaven, it’s certain our animals are to be there. Their lives become so interwoven with our own, it would take more than an archangel to detangle them."

- Pam Brown

"A pet is never truly forgotten until it is no longer remembered."

- Lacie Petitto

"No amount of time can erase the memory of a good cat."

- Leo Dworkin

"Dogs have a way of finding the people who need them and filling an emptiness we didn’t ever know we had."

- Thom Jones

"Nobody can fully understand the meaning of love unless he’s owned a dog. A dog can show you more honest affection with a flick of his tail than a man can gather through a lifetime of handshakes."

- Gene Hill

"You think dogs will not be in Heaven? I tell you, they will be there long before any of us."

- Robert Louis Stevenson

"Our perfect companions never have fewer than four feet."

- Colette

"Pets are not just animals, they are gifts to us that bring love and joy to our lives."

- Bob Barker

"How lucky I am to have had something that makes saying goodbye so hard."

- A.A. Milne

"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened."

- Anatole France

"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went."

- Will Rogers

"He is my other eyes that can see above the clouds; my other ears that hear above the winds. He is the part of me that can reach out into the sea. He has told me a thousand times over that I am his reason for being; by the way he rests against my leg; by the way he thumps his tail at my smallest smile; by the way he shows his hurt when I leave without taking him. (I think it makes him sick with worry when he is not along to care for me.) When I am wrong, he is delighted to forgive. When I am angry, he clowns to make me smile. When I am happy, he is joy unbounded. When I am a fool, he ignores it. When I succeed, he brags. Without him, I am only another man. With him, I am all-powerful. He is loyalty itself. He has taught me the meaning of devotion. With him, I know a secret comfort and a private peace. He has brought me understanding where before I was ignorant. His head on my knee can heal my human hurts. His presence by my side is protection against my fears of dark and unknown things. He has promised to wait for me… whenever… wherever – in case I need him. And I expect I will – as I always have. He is just my dog."

- Gene Hill

"The passing of a beloved pet evokes a depth of grief often difficult for others to comprehend. It’s a unique form of loss, intensified by the lack of understanding and support from those who haven’t experienced the profound love and bond shared with an animal companion."

- Kelly Daugherty

"The bond with a dog is as lasting as the ties of this earth can ever be."

- Konrad Lorenz

"A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself."

- Josh Billings

"Those we love don’t go away, they walk beside us every day."

- Anonymous

"A good dog never dies. He always stays. He walks beside you on crisp autumn days when frost is on the fields and winter’s drawing near."

- Mary Carolyn Davies

"I thank the Lord that there is one thing in this world that money can’t buy, and that is the wag of a dog’s tail."

- Josh Billings

"The love of a dog is a pure thing. He gives you a trust which is total. You must not betray it."

- Michel Houellebecq

"You can usually tell that a man is good if he has a dog who loves him."

- W. Bruce Cameron

"Before you get a dog, you can’t quite imagine what living with one might be like; afterward, you can’t imagine living any other way."

- Caroline Knapp

"Petting, scratching and cuddling a dog could be as soothing to the mind and heart as deep meditation and almost as good for the soul as prayer."

- Dean Koontz

"Companion, friend and confidante, a friend I won’t forget. You’ll live forever in my heart, my sweet forever pet."

- Susanne Taylor

"Your place I’ll hold, you will be missed, the fur I stroked, the nose I kissed. And as you journey to your final rest, take with you this … I loved you best."

- Jim Willis

"When you adopt a dog, you have a lot of very good days and one very bad day."

- W. Bruce Cameron

"Dogs’ lives are too short. Their only fault, really."

- Agnes Sligh Turnbull

"If you have a dog, you will most likely outlive it; to get a dog is to open yourself to profound joy and, prospectively, to equally profound sadness."

- Marjorie Garber

"Dogs die. But dogs live too. Right up until they die, they live. They live brave, beautiful lives. They protect their families. And love us. And make our lives a little brighter. And they don’t waste time being afraid of tomorrow."

- Dan Gemeinhart

"Everyone thinks that their dog is the best dog in the world. And none of them are wrong."

- W.R. Pursche

"There is nothing truer in this world than the love of a good dog."

- Mira Grant

"The whole glorious history of animals with people is about joy and connection. It’s about loving this creature and letting this creature love you."

- Jon Katz

"You think dogs will not be in heaven? I tell you, they will be there long before any of us."

- Robert Louis Stevenson

"The dog is a gentleman; I hope to go to his heaven not man’s."

- Mark Twain

"We are our pet’s heaven, and just because their physical body is no longer alive, it doesn’t mean their soul loves us any less. We are loved from beyond and always will be."

- Lyn Ragan

"I heard somebody define heaven once as a place where, when you get there, all the dogs you ever loved run to greet you."

- Robert B. Parker

"God will prepare everything for our perfect happiness in heaven, and if it takes my dog being there, I believe he’ll be there."

- Billy Graham

"Dogs come into our lives to teach us about love and loyalty. They depart to teach us about loss. We try to replace them but never quite succeed. A new dog never replaces an old dog; it merely expands the heart. If you have loved many dogs, your heart is very big."

- Erica Jong

"Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge."

- Edna Clyne-Rekhy

"What greater gift than the love of a cat."

- Charles Dickens

"My story will be over soon. But it’s not something to be sad about. Remembering those who went ahead. Remembering those who will follow after. And someday, we will meet all those people again, out beyond the horizon."

- Hiro Arikawa

"We should never underestimate the powerful draw of a bond with a being that loves us unconditionally, asking very little in return. Losing this comfort and source of joy can be incomprehensible."

- Linda Lipshutz

"No one can fully understand the meaning of love unless he’s owned a dog."

- Gene Hill

"Once you have had a wonderful dog, a life without one is a life diminished."

- Dean Koontz

"No matter how little money and how few possessions you own, having a dog makes you rich."

- Louis Sabin

"I believe that dogs are sent to us to open our hearts."

- Tamar Geller

"We need to go first because we cannot live without your love and care. If we lived longer than you, we would not and could not survive. It’s supposed to be this way. We also need to cross the rainbow bridge before you do so that we can be on the other side to greet you when you get there. We wait at home for you here, and we wait at home for you there. It’s just the way it is."

- Kate McGahan

"With all of my heart, I believe it is true that there is a heaven for animals too. Sometimes I think they already know, all of the animals … just where they’ll go."

- Nancy Tillman

"It is amazing how much love and laughter they bring into our lives and even how much closer we become with each other because of them."

- Josh Grogan

"Animals have a much better attitude to life and death than we do. They know when their time has come. We are the ones that suffer when they pass, but it’s a healing kind of grief that enables us to deal with other griefs that are not so easy to grab hold of."

- Emmylou Harris

"How lucky I am to have known someone and something that saying goodbye is so damned awful."

- Marilyn Hassett in The Other Side of the Mountain

"I have felt cats rubbing their faces against mine and touching my cheek with claws carefully sheathed. These things, to me, are expressions of love."

- James Herriot

"It came to me that every time I lose a dog, they take a piece of my heart with them, and every new dog that comes into my life gifts me with a piece of their heart. If I live long enough, all of the components of my heart will be dog, and I will become as generous and as loving as they are."

- Anonymous

"All dogs go to heaven because, unlike people, dogs are naturally good and loyal and kind."

- Melba Moore

"Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in."

- Mark Twain

"The world would be a nicer place if everyone had the ability to love as unconditionally as a dog."

- M.K. Clinton

"Grief is not the absence of love — it is the echo of love still longing to be expressed. — Henry, trueYou Media"

- TrueYou Media

"...love knows not its own depth until the hour of separation."

- Kabil Gibran

"Grieve not, nor speak of me with tears, but laugh and talk of me as if I were beside you..I loved you so- ’twas Heaven here with you."

- Isla Paschal Richardson

"The dog is a gentleman; I hope to go to his heaven, not man’s."

- Mark Twain

"If I have any beliefs about immortality it is that certain dogs I know will go to heaven, and very very few people."

- James Thurber

"There is no greater gift than the love of a cat."

- Charles Dickens

"I have sometimes thought of the final cause of dogs having such short lives and I am quite satisfied it is in compassion to the human race; for if we suffer so much in losing a dog after an acquaintance of ten or twelve years, what would it be if they were to live double that time? The misery of keeping a dog is his dying so soon. But, to be sure, if he lived for fifty years and then died, what would become of me?"

- Sir Walter Scott

"All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle."

- St. Francis of Assisi

"God’s finger touched him, and he slept."

- Alfred, Lord Tennyson

"Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It’s the transition that’s troublesome."

- Isaac Asimov

"I guess you don’t really own a dog, you rent them, and you have to be thankful that you had a long lease."

- Joe Garagiola

"Dogs…do not ruin their sleep worrying about how to keep the objects they have, and to obtain the objects they have not. There is nothing of value they have to bequeath except their love and their faith."

- Eugene O’Neill

"What is grief, if not love persevering?"

- Vision

"Heartbreak is life educating us."

- George Bernard Shaw

"I never saw you cry Not until our dog died And the whole family came back together We held her body as they put the needle in her And then I saw you cry And then I saw you cry"

- Adrianne Lenker

"His ears were often the first thing to catch my tears."

- Elizabeth Barrett Browning

"There are few things in life more heartwarming than to be welcomed by a cat."

- Tay Hohoff

"Pets are humanizing. They remind us we have an obligation and responsibility to preserve and nurture and care for all life."

- James Cromwell

"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do."

- Eleanor Roosevelt

"There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats."

- Albert Schweitzer

"The smallest feline is a masterpiece."

- Leonardo da Vinci

"Time spent with cats is never wasted."

- Sigmund Freud

"No amount of time can erase the memory of a good cat, and no amount of masking tape can ever totally remove his fur from your couch."

- Leo Dworkin

"I can say with sincerity that I love cats; furthermore, I am going to give very good reasons why those who hate them are wrong."

- Emily Brontë

"If you don’t mourn a dead cat properly, you’ll never get over it."

- Hiro Arikawa

"Cats are intended to teach us that not everything in nature has a purpose."

- Garrison Keillor

"A cat has absolute emotional honesty: human beings, for one reason or another, may hide their feelings, but a cat does not."

- Ernest Hemingway

"My mind still talks to you and my heart still looks for you but my soul knows you are at peace."

- Unknown Author

"I loved you your whole life and I’ll miss you the rest of mine."

- Unknown Author

"I always knew this time would come, From the very instant our eyes first met. How I loved you then! How I love you now! I made a promise then, and I keep that promise now... You will not suffer from a pain that will not heal; You will not know the loss of a life remembered, now gone. It is for me alone to make this decision, The price for the bright joy and pure laughter You brought me during the time we shared. I am the only one who can decide when it is time. When my hope dies, and my fears ride high, Just when I need you most, I must let you go. It is for you alone to tell me when you are ready For without your guidance, I will not know When to lay my grief, my guilt, my anger, My sorrow and my selfish heart aside And give you this last gift, this greatest gift. Your eyes will speak to mine, and I will know. The pain of this moment is excruciating. Tears stream down my face in a river of sorrow. And my heart drowns in a pool of grief. For you have spoken and I have listened, And unlike other decisions I have made This one brings no relief...no comfort...no peace. For if there's one thing you've taught me, If there's only one thing I've learned... Unconditional love has a condition after all, I must be willing to let you go, when you speak to me I must be willing to help you go, if you cannot go alone. And I must accept my pain so you can be free of yours. Go easily now, go quickly now, Do not linger here, it is time for you to leave. Go find your strength, go find your youth. Go find the ones who've gone before you. You are free to leave me now, free to let your spirit soar Rest easy now, your pain will soon be gone. I pray I will find comfort in my memories... In the dark and lonely days ahead. I cannot say I will not miss you, I cannot say I will not cry. For only my tears can heal my broken heart. But, I promise you this: as long as I live, You will live, alive in my mind, forever in my heart. So I give you this last gift, all I have left to give, And this will be my greatest gift...sending you away. It is the measure of my unconditional love... For only the greatest love can say, "Good-bye, go find the bridge, we'll meet again, Loving you has been the greatest gift of all.""

"The pain of loss is a reflection of the love and joy you brought to each other’s lives."

"The love of a pet will forever leave a mark on your heart."

"Heaven's the place where all of the dogs you've ever loved come to greet you."

"Some of you, particularly those who think they have recently lost a dog to “death”, don’t really understand this. I’ve had no desire to explain, but won’t be around forever and must. Dogs never die. They don’t know how to. They get tired, and very old, and their bones hurt. Of course they don’t die. If they did they would not want to always go for a walk, even long after their old bones say:” No, no, not a good idea. Let’s not go for a walk.” Nope, dogs always want to go for a walk. They might get one step before their aging tendons collapse them into a heap on the floor, but that’s what dogs are. They walk. It’s not that they dislike your company. On the contrary, a walk with you is all there is. Their boss, and the cacaphonic symphony of odor that the world is. Cat poop, another dog’s mark, a rotting chicken bone (exultation), and you. That’s what makes their world perfect, and in a perfect world death has no place. However, dogs get very very sleepy. That’s the thing, you see. They don’t teach you that at the fancy university where they explain about quarks, gluons, and Keynesian economics. They know so much they forget that dogs never die. It’s a shame, really. Dogs have so much to offer and people just talk a lot. When you think your dog has died, it has just fallen asleep in your heart. And by the way, it is wagging it’s tail madly, you see, and that’s why your chest hurts so much and you cry all the time. Who would not cry with a happy dog wagging its tail in their chest. Ouch! Wap wap wap wap wap, that hurts. But they only wag when they wake up. That’s when they say: “Thanks Boss! Thanks for a warm place to sleep and always next to your heart, the best place.” When they first fall asleep, they wake up all the time, and that’s why, of course, you cry all the time. Wap, wap, wap. After a while they sleep more. (remember, a dog while is not a human while. You take your dog for walk, it’s a day full of adventure in an hour. Then you come home and it’s a week, well one of your days, but a week, really, before the dog gets another walk. No WONDER they love walks.) Anyway, like I was saying, they fall asleep in your heart, and when they wake up, they wag their tail. After a few dog years, they sleep for longer naps, and you would too. They were a GOOD DOG all their life, and you both know it. It gets tiring being a good dog all the time, particularly when you get old and your bones hurt and you fall on your face and don’t want to go outside to pee when it is raining but do anyway, because you are a good dog. So understand, after they have been sleeping in your heart, they will sleep longer and longer. But don’t get fooled. They are not “dead.” There’s no such thing, really. They are sleeping in your heart, and they will wake up, usually when you’re not expecting it. It’s just who they are. I feel sorry for people who don’t have dogs sleeping in their heart. You’ve missed so much."

"Your pet’s love was a gift that will keep on giving for the rest of your life."

"To grieve deeply, is to have loved fully"

"Grief is the price of love, and the depth of your sorrow reflects the depth of your connection. May you find solace knowing that your dog felt your love every day."

"Something that comforted me was being told that my love would always be with them, and that their love would always be with me. When I lost my girl I lost a piece of my heart, but I like to believe that she took that piece with her to bring her love until we meet again."

"When you lose your beloved dog, your heart will shatter into pieces. You will pick up the pieces and glue them back together. Your heart will never be the same. It will always be broken. Over time, the pieces will come back together, with love and happiness and memories joining the seams of the broken pieces. Once all the pieces are joined, you realize that the glue of love, happiness, and memories has made your heart just a little bit bigger, and the glue of love, happiness, and memories isn't a scar, but is now a permanent piece of you where that dog will live forever."

"When tomorrow starts without me And I’m not here to see If the sun should rise and find your eyes All filled with tears for me I wish you wouldn’t cry The way you did today While thinking of the many things We did not get to say I know how much you love me As much as I love you Each time that you think of me I know you will miss me too."

"Having a pet is a risk – you always have the grief ahead. But that’s the flip side of love."

- Unknown

"If love alone could have kept you here, you would’ve lived forever."

- Unknown

"Fly high little buddy. My thoughts are with you, Pets have paw prints on our hearts."

"The only way to get through grief is to get through it. It’s not a hopeful quote, and it didn’t make me feel better, but it made me feel seen. Grief is part of life."

"Everyone thinks their dog is the best. And none of them are wrong."

"My dog was my favorite hello and my most difficult goodbye."

"If there is a heaven, it is certain our animals will be there. Their lives become so interwoven with our own, it would take more than an archangel to detangle them."

"God gave us dogs. Furry little beasts, insist on belly scratches, can do nothing for themselves. No opposable thumbs, can only whine, big puppy eyes even when they, are past their prime. God gave us dogs. There they lay. Dogs, whose lives pass 10 times faster than ours. Past her prime, my poor dog lies, past her prime my poor dog sleeps. God gave us dogs, and in heaven I hope to find mine."

"The only thing more powerful than mortal death is love. You will see your baby again- in your personal Heaven. I am so sorry for your loss."

"Not all angels have wings. Sometimes they have whiskers."

"It is a fearful thing to love what death can touch."

"From the first hello, to the final farewell, in between, there was love.... so much love. I'm so sorry for your loss."

"Cats leave paw prints in your heart, forever and always."

"I loved you completely. And you loved me the same. That's all. The rest is confetti."

"It came to me that every time I lose a dog, they take a piece of my heart with them, and every new dog who comes into my life gifts me with a piece of their heart. If I live long enough, all the components of my heart will be dog, and I will become as generous and loving as they are."

"When we think of those companions who traveled by our side down life’s road, let us not say with sadness that they left us behind but rather say with gentle gratitude that they once were with us."

"Heaven will never be paradise unless my cats are there waiting for me."

"Though your beloved cat is gone, remember them with a smile. That ring you hear in your ear is a gentle purr to remind you your souls are forever connected."

"Your favorite chair is empty now, where you would lie and sleep. But the memory of our happy times is mine to always keep."

"Farewell is never forever. Though your precious cat isn’t on earth, their soul is forever connected to yours."

"To make heaven the perfect resting place for loved ones we adore, God made sure those Pearly Gates contained a kitty door."

"When tomorrow starts without me, don’t think we’re far apart. For every time you think of me, I’m right here in your heart."

"My heart will always wear the pawprints left by you."

"One day all of the cats we ever loved will come running towards us, and that day will be a good day."

"The littlest feet make the biggest footprints in our hearts."

"If the kindest souls were rewarded with the longest lives, dogs would outlive us all."

"I loved you your whole life. I’ll miss you for the rest of mine."

"Having a pet is a risk—you always have the grief ahead. But that’s the flip side of love."

"No longer by my side, but forever in my heart."

"Everyone is taught that angels have wings, but the lucky ones of us find they have four paws."

- Unknown

"Dogs leave pawprints on our hearts."