A Tipperary vet says dogs can feel grief when an owner passes away.
Mairead Leahy of Arra Vets in Tipperary Town says while dogs do feel grief when they lose an owner, they do not feel it in the same way humans do.
This discussion around dogs and grief comes following the publication of a picture of the corgis that belonged to Queen Elizabeth II, appearing saddened at her funeral earlier this week.
She says dogs will miss the routine the most when an owner dies.
“They will go back to those places where they know they got comfort; they might go hop back up on the bed and wait for that person to come back. If that person normally brings them for a walk, they might sit at the door and wait for that person in the same way as if you went down to the shop and your dog sat at the door waiting.
“What they really miss is the routine. They definitely know that things have changed when there’s a loss in the house, and they also sense other people’s changes in behaviour or their sadness. They know that something has happened. But, I don’t think they get grief in the same way we do, in the sense that there’s an end and nothing after.”
