A lady who was forced to take two weeks off work after the death of her dog has pleaded with people to be more empathetic toward mourning pet owners, comparing her own grief to that of losing a child.
Wendy O’Grady, a 47-year-old Surrey retail shop supervisor, adopted her dog Zac in 2009. After ten losses in 15 years, her husband Mike surprised her with the nine-month-old chocolate Labrador.
Unfortunately, Zac was diagnosed with cancer in July 2021, necessitating the couple’s tragic choice to put him down.
Wendy described the devastating effect Zac’s death had had on the couple, adding, “Losing Zac was just like losing a kid.”
“I’m at a loss for words to describe my anguish. We were distraught. After 12 years, it was heartbreaking not to see him at the door when I returned home.”
Wendy described Zac as an initial source of delight throughout the couple’s battle to conceive.
“It was a really trying moment,” she said. “I was unable to conceive and we were going through a difficult period.
“As a result, when Mike purchased Zac’s house, he drastically transformed our lives. The connection was instantaneous.
“I fell in love with [Zac’s] gentle demeanor the first time I saw him, as we sat in the back seat of the automobile.”
Zac became a fixture at Egham Town Football Club, where Mike took him to every game.
Wendy and Mike welcomed Purdy, a black Labrador and pointer cross, into their household in 2012.
However, tragedy struck in July, when Zac was unable to walk properly and a vet determined he had spinal cancer.
After medicine proved ineffective, the agonizing choice to euthanize Zac was taken, resulting in understandable anguish.
Wendy’s situation deteriorated further when another relative became unwell during the same week. The strain exacerbated her autoimmune illness, Sjogren’s syndrome, which damages the body’s fluid-producing organs.
Wendy was unable to work for a week and said that she struggled to seek solace from others.
According to a survey conducted by pet health specialists Itch, who are advocating for all UK businesses to give compassionate leave for pet owners, more than half of pet owners in the UK compare losing their pet to losing a family member…
“I believe it would have been beneficial if they had addressed the situation Mike and I were in,” she thought.
Despite the loss, the couple had a pleasant surprise on 21 August, when a family member presented them with their new dog Zebedee.
“He is less than nine weeks old. My mother-in-law purchased him for us as an anniversary present, and we just picked him up.” Wendy clarified.
“He’s very remarkable; he boings and bounces all over the place.
“While he is a new member of our family, we are still mourning for Zac. I get home from work and continue to anticipate him running out to welcome me.”
Wendy reiterated her call for people to speak more freely about pet loss: “More people have come to me about Zebedee than about Zac. They may believe our pet is a substitute, but that could never be the case.
“I believe that individuals should be more transparent and just discuss it. We lost a family member, and I believe it should be handled.”
