Video: “Furever” Documentary Looks at How We Grieve for Our Pets

We have posted numerous times about the loss of a dog and the wide range of responses to such a traumatic event. Some owners have chosen to memorialize their beloved pet through video or photography, while others have gone so far as to clone the deceased. “Furever” is a new documentary that explores the ways that Americans react to their grief when a pet dies, and the trailer for the film was recently released. Here’s what the filmmakers have to say:

FUREVER is a feature-length documentary that explores the dimensions of grief people experience over the loss of a pet. It examines the sociological evolution of pets in the U.S. today, particularly their position in a family unit, and how this evolution is affecting those in the veterinary profession and death care industry. With interviews from grieving pet owners, veterinarians, psychologists, sociologists, religious scholars, neuroscientists, and the many professionals who preserve a pet’s body for their devastated clientele, or re-purpose a pet’s cremains in unique ways (taxidermy, cloning, mummification, freeze-drying, and many more), FUREVER confronts contemporary trends, perspectives, and relevant cultural assumptions regarding attachment, religion, ritual, grief, and death, and studies the bonds that form between humans and animals, both psychological and physiological.

It’s a fascinating subject that all of us must deal with eventually. This documentary looks as if it doesn’t shy away from any part of the experience.

Click here for the full story.

Maggie, a Standard Poodle, was mummified by her owner. photo via “Furever”