Ways to honor a pet that died
A memorial is something you keep. Honoring them is something you do, and it's often the part that actually helps.
Honoring is an act, not a purchase
When a person dies there's a service, an obituary, people bringing food. When a pet dies there's usually none of it, and you go back to work the next day. That gap is a big part of why the weeks after feel so strange. Honoring them is how you fill it in yourself, and none of it needs anyone's permission. (For things to keep, see our list of memorial ideas.)
Ways people honor them
None of these cost much. Most cost nothing.
When their routine still hurts
Keeping their walk sounds like it would hurt more, and at first it can. If it's unbearable right now, let it go for a while. That's a way of honoring them too: it means it mattered.
Make something from what you already have
Most people have hundreds of photos of their pet and no idea what to do with them. Choosing twenty, putting them in order and writing a line about who they were is itself a way of honoring them. That's what a tribute is made from, ours included.
It's never too late
There's no window that closes. People honor a dog they lost ten years ago, or a childhood cat, and it lands just as well. Often it's easier later, when you can look at the photos without it flattening you.
Common questions
What's the difference between honoring a pet and a pet memorial?
Mostly whether it's a thing or an act. A memorial is something you keep - a print, a paw print, a stone in the garden. Honoring them is something you do - telling their story, keeping their walk, giving in their name. Most people end up with a bit of both, and neither is the more correct one.
How do I honor a pet with kids in the house?
Give them a job rather than just an explanation - drawing a picture, choosing the photo to frame, telling their favorite story at dinner, picking the shelter to give to. Being included in doing something is usually what children remember, more than what was said.
Do you generate or alter images of my pet?
No. We use the photos you send, as they are - no generated faces, no added wings or halos, nothing invented. An approximation of a face you loved is the one thing nobody wants.