The Pet Loss Companion

Join family therapists and authors Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio and Nancy Saxton-Lopez for a conversation sparked by an audience member's story and question. We'll talk about how the death of a pet can heighten our anxiety about the health of our surviving pets and strategies for addressing this.    As always, we welcome your comments, questions and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be r...

Do you talk with your pets? Of course you do! Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about the soulful, intuitive ways that we and our dogs, cats, horses, parrots, rabbits, and other non-human family members communicate.   As always, we welcome your comments, questions and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at nsaxto...

Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation that responds to recent listener questions about how we can keep the memory of our pet alive, how to manage our grief when a freak accident claims the life or a young animal companion, and more.    As always, we welcome your comments, questions and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can b...

Join family therapists and authors Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio and Nancy Saxton-Lopez for a conversation about communicating with our deceased pets. We'll share stories of contact made directly by those who have lost beloved animal companions, including Nancy and Ken, as well as messages received through professional communicators.   We welcome your comments, questions and suggestions for future to...

Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez  and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about euthanasia in special circumstances, such as when the decision to euthanize means the end of a relationship with a canine work partner or personal service provider. We'll also touch upon other extraordinary situations, such as when euthanasia is mandated by a court decision. We welcome yo...

Join family therapists and authors Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio and Nancy Saxton-Lopez for a look at the misgivings, regrets, and afterthoughts so common after the loss of a beloved animal companion. We'll share thoughts on how to live with these common features of grief.    We welcome your comments, questions and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at nsaxtonlopez@csmpc.com and...

Join authors and family therapists Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about the importance of the bond we forge with our animal companions and the ways that that bond adds to our health and wellbeing. Please note that we're sharing this recorded program outside of our usual Thurs schedule because of our vacations this month. We'll post our next episode after our live 6...

Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about guilt and self-forgiveness. As always, Ken and Nancy welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at nsaxtonlopez@csmpc.com and Ken at kenddv@gmail.com. The Pet Loss Companion (book) on Amazon Many thanks to Devin Febbroriello for sharing her moving...

Join family therapists and authors Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio and Nancy Saxton-Lopez for a conversation about a variety of perspectives on death and dying and how these shape our experiences with loss and grief.  As always, Ken and Nancy welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at nsaxtonlopez@csmpc.com and Ken at kenddv@gmail.com.   The Pet Lo...

Join family therapists and authors Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio and Nancy Saxton-Lopez for a discussion of questions raised by two audience members who recently suffered complicated losses. One involves the death of a puppy who was being cared for by a family member and the other a pet with many rapidly progressing illnesses.  As always, Ken and Nancy welcome your questions, comments, and suggestion...

Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about when it makes sense to speak with a therapist and how to go about finding the right one for you.    As always, Ken and Nancy welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at nsaxtonlopez@csmpc.com and Ken at kenddv@gmail.com.   The Pet...

Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about love, loss, and resilience with special guests Heidi Gutierrez and Dave Gruben, hosts of  Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave:  https://laughattheoddspodcast.buzzsprout.com  https://linktr.ee/LaughAtTheOddsPodcast  Heidi Gutierrez and Dave Gruben are no strangers t...

How do you grieve? Do you listen to songs that help you get your feelings out, take walks out in nature, call upon friends who understand that you just need to vent? Maybe you pour your energy into creative activities, perhaps making collages or scrapbooks or videos?   Join authors and family therapists Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about the many ways t...

Join authors and family therapists Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio and Nancy Saxton-Lopez for a conversation about living beyond the loss of our beloved animal companions. On April 29th Nancy shared the loss of her much-loved pug, Molly. This time we'll get personal again as Ken lost his beloved Chihuahua, Isabel, this past Saturday. We'll talk about how we cope personally with our losses and also about how...

Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about grief and gender differences. We'll share what we've learned from our pet loss support groups and work as therapists.    The Pet Loss Companion (book) on Amazon . We welcome your comments, questions and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at nsaxtonlopez@csmpc.com and...

Join authors and family therapists Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio and Nancy Saxton Lopez for a conversation about how to take care of ourselves while grieving. We'll share thoughts on how to respond when people say unhelpful (although generally well-intended) things and sources of help.  We welcome your comments, questions, and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at nsaxtonlopez@csmpc....

Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about the many different ways--each of them perfect and beautiful--that those of us who love our animal companions create memorials and hold onto our memories. Send us your stories and Images (nsaxtonlopez@csmpc.com and kenddv@gmail.com) and we'll share them on future broadcasts and on The Pet Loss C...

Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation focused on recently asked questions and comments from audience members. We welcome your questions and comments before, during, and after the broadcast.  The Pet Loss Companion (book) on Amazon . Quality of Life Scale:   https://vet.osu.edu/vmc/sites/default...  

It can be difficult to decide whether and when to adopt a new pet after losing a beloved animal companion.  Join family therapists and coauthors Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio and Nancy Saxton-Lopez for a conversation about this and other challenges that we may encounter as we grieve  We welcome your comments, questions and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at nsaxtonlopez@csmpc...

Just before publishing our book, The Pet Loss Companion, a journalist friend generously gave it one last review. He loved the book and also questioned our use of the words "soul" and "who" (rather than "that") when referring to animals. Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about the meaning of the word soul, whether animals have one, an...

"Who rescued who?" The question on this popular bumper sticker may go deeper than we think. A number of researchers suggest that dogs and human beings co-evolved, with wolves partnering with us to hunt and teaching us valuable lessons about cooperative living.  Join family therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about our ancient partnership with...

Nancy's beloved dog, Molly, died on Tues 4/27. At 6PM ET on Thurs, 4/29, we'll share thoughts on the immediate impact of loss and first steps forward on the journey of grief.    We welcome your comments, questions and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at nsaxtonlopez@csmpc.com and Ken at kenddv@gmail.com. The Pet Loss Companion (book) on Amazon .

Grief can bring an onslaught of gut-wrenching questions: Will we ever see one another again? Did they know how much I love them? Will they be reincarnated into a new life? How will I go on without them? Join therapists and authors Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about the questions that may pursue us in the aftermath of loss.  We welcome your comments, question...

Grief has a time frame of its own and grief's persistence can make us wonder if we'll ever see its end. Authors and family therapists Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio can assure you that better days are ahead and offer this conversation on how to care for yourself along the way.   We welcome your comments, questions and suggestions for future topics. Nancy can be reached at n...

When a pet's health deteriorates greatly there may come a time when we question whether their suffering outweighs the benefits of living. Join Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio for a conversation about navigating the complex questions that arise when we consider euthanasia as an option for ending a beloved animal companion's suffering.  We welcome your questions, comments, and sugg...