Funerals for Pets

Should we or should we not have funerals or ceremonies for our pets? Pet owners would probably argue yes and non pet owners would probably argue that it's ridiculous and a waste of time and money.

I can understand both sides of the story. It's been interesting for me on this journey. I have lost a pet, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends. Each one costs time and money but both these shrink into the background as the emotion takes over.

I wrote a book on Funeral Planning in Ireland. It was published two years ago. It was for humans. Of course it was. When humans die we have a funeral. That's why when we lost Roxy 6 years ago and we came home from the vets, I was at a loss - in every meaning of the word! I couldn't figure out what I was supposed to do. My friends didn't know what to do. There was no blueprint, no schedule of events to help us to figure out what was next. 

I was talking about my business to a lady today and explaining this to her and it's interesting - there has been two funerals I have missed out on or have not happened to loved ones in my life - my grandmother (I was in America) and my pet Roxy (we didn't have one) and whether it is because of the strong bond I had with them or the fact that I didn't attend a funeral for them, I still get massively emotional when I talk about either. Is this because of the strong bond with them or because I didn't 'go through the motions' a funeral brings? Does a funeral help to move you through the stages of grief or is it just a 'thing you do' when someone dies?

I'm in NYC currently and I know pet funerals are a huge thing here and will probably at some point make an impact overseas but is it necessary or just another way for people to make money from emotional life events?

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