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If you opt to meet with a grief counselor, it also helps you keep track of your feelings, and where you are in the healing process.

- Make a scrapbook. This is especially great for younger kids, an enjoyable project the whole family can do together, and one that will last for years to come. Last year, I put together a mini-album from several family pictures that included my dog. I decorated it with her name on the cover, and dog-themed stickers. Simple, yes, but it was really a great time of remembrance for me. Feel free to make your own album as simple or as elaborate as you wish. Have children include drawings, and ask friends and family members to write about their favorite memory of your pet. Include vet records, labels from their favorite foods, a lock of fur...anything goes!

- Volunteer. Contact your local animal shelter to find opportunities to help animals in need of a loving home in your community. Consider starting a local or on-line support group for others who are coping with the loss of a pet. Get involved in a animal-assisted therapy organization - these usually take animals to nursing homes, hospitals, and other facilities to cheer up patients and help them heal faster.

In due time, you'll be ready to turn your own experience around to give hope to others going through similar situations or worse. Your dog loved being a companion to you, and your happiness meant the world to him or her, so get out there and spread the joy. It's what he or she would have wanted!

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