I Feel So Guilty About My Dog's Death Options

[ToBeFrank]

I lost my 7 year old Boston Terrier, Sophie, on Friday night. It was a horrible accident, and I am guilt stricken and distraught. I am deeply saddened that she is not with me anymore, but the image I keep seeing in my mind of her death is torturous. I dropped her off at a friend's place because I was heading out of town early Saturday morning. Around 8pm on Friday they called me saying they couldn't find her and she got out when they left the front door open. I spent all of Friday night and Saturday morning combing their neighborhood for her. Mid day Saturday they called me and told me they found her in the pool. She had drowned. Sophie had such a gentle heart and was scared of her own shadow. It is killing me knowing that she spent her last moments terrified and fighting for her life. Even though I wasn't there, I can't get the horrific images of how I know she would have fought out of my mind. I also can't get rid of the image of her lifeless body and eyes when I picked her up to take her to get cremated. I don't want to remember my beloved Sophie like this. How do I get over this?

[wchamilton]

ToBeFrank,

I am so sorry over the loss of Sophie. I also lost my dog Winston to a tragic accident back in July and was ridden by the same feelings of guilt that you must be feeling now. Your mind is racing with "what ifs" and you can't help but wonder what you could have done differently to prevent this... that's how I was when Winston died and this site was absolutely wonderful in helping me cope with the loss.

One thing you won't find here is blame. No one here is going to question what you did or question the series of events that led to your tragic loss. You're going to find nothing but support, compassion, and lots of e-shoulders to cry on. We're a family here, a family bound by the love of animals and the pain of their passing.

Welcome to our family. Please let us know how you're doing and take some comfort in the fact that you're in all of our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.

-Clay