33 Loss of a Dog Quotes for Grieving and Healing
The hardest part of loving a dog is the knowledge that we lose them way too soon.
Whether missing the heartbeat at your feet or trying to offer comfort to someone grieving their best friend, the following sayings for the loss of a pet put words to the feelings that are tough to express.
Loss of a Dog Quotes: Grieving the Loss
There’s a void left after saying goodbye to a dog, and it’s important to work through the stages of grief. The following comforting quotes can help pet parents understand that the pain of loss is part of the price of love.
“Dogs’ lives are too short. Their only fault, really.” – Agnes Sligh Turnbull
“Heartbreak is life educating us.” – George Bernard Shaw
“What is grief, if not love persevering.” – Unknown
“Having a dog will bless you with the happiest days of your life, and one of the worst days.”- Unknown
“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?” – Sir Walter Scott
“Grief is pervasive. It cannot be quarantined any more than love can be quarantined. Grief affects all areas of life.” – Shelby Forsythia
“If you’ve ever wondered what the right thing is to say to someone who’s grieving a death, I think this is it: Tell me all about your dear one.” – Duchess Goldblatt
“Suppressed grief is like an ember. It radiates a burning glow in the chest. If disregarded, it could rekindle a fire.” – Anoir Ou-Chad
“His ears were often the first thing to catch my tears.” – Elizabeth Barrett Browning
“Sorrow is how we learn to love. Your heart isn’t breaking. It hurts because it’s getting larger. The larger it gets, the more love it holds.” – Rita Mae Brown
Dog Rainbow Bridge Quotes
Many pet parents believe that dogs that have passed are waiting for them in a place called the Rainbow Bridge—free of pain and fear, where they walk among other animals at peace. These dog heaven quotes can offer hope to those mourning the loss of their best friend.
“Heaven is a place where all the dogs you’ve ever loved come to greet you.” – Oliver Gaspirt
“Those we love may come and go, but just like a rainbow doesn’t stay. They’re never very far away.” – Richard Lawrence Belford
“Some angels choose fur instead of wings.” – Unknown
“All the love you ever gave is waiting for you there at Rainbow Bridge.” – Kate McGahan
“While we are mourning the loss of our friend, others are rejoicing to meet him behind the veil.” – John Taylor
“Not always eye to eye, but always heart to heart.” – Unknown
“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
“You think the final act of love is setting them free to Rainbow Bridge? That is not the final act of love. The final act of love is releasing them from your leash of grief so they can be free in heaven on the other side of the Bridge.” – Kate McGahan
Dog Memorial Quotes: Gone but Not Forgotten
Dogs leave pawprints on our hearts, and the following loss of a dog quotes underscore their permanence in our lives.
“The one best place to bury a good dog is in the heart of his master.” – Ben Hur Lampman
“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, his head within our hand in his old way.” – Unknown
“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.” – Thomas Campbell
“Miss me, but not for long.
I was your joy,
Don’t let me be your woe,
So remember me, and smile.
Then let me go.” – Lucy Gordon
“Not the least hard thing to bear when they go from us, these quiet friends, is that they carry away with them so many years of our own lives.” – John Galsworthy
“What we have once enjoyed we can never lose; all that we have loved deeply, becomes a part of us.” – Helen Keller
“That one true heart was left behind! What feeling do we ever find, to equal among humankind, a dog’s fidelity!” – Thomas Hardy
“When we think of those companions who travelled 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.” – Unknown
“Just because somebody is gone doesn’t mean they don’t exist anymore—with a little imagination, you’re never alone.” – Marc Levy
“Love is how you stay alive, even after you are gone.” – Mitch Albom
“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” – Winnie The Pooh/A.A. Milne
“Death ends a life, not a relationship.” – Jack Lemmon
“If love alone could have kept you here, you would’ve lived forever.” – Unknown
“Dogs have a way of finding the people who need them and filling an emptiness we didn’t ever know we had.” – Thom Jones
