You are not overreacting
Pet loss support groups and grief helplines in Australia
Grief for an animal is real grief. If you are struggling to eat, sleep, work or explain to anyone why it hurts this much, you are not broken and you are not overreacting — you have lost someone who was with you every day.
Everything on this page is free and open to anyone in Australia, whether or not your pet was in our care. If you would rather talk to a person who understands, phone Alby on 0493 814 474.
Free helplines you can ring today
- Griefline — 1300 845 745, free telephone and online grief support, including pet loss. griefline.org.au
- Lifeline — 13 11 14, 24 hours a day, for anyone in crisis or distress.
- Beyond Blue — 1300 22 4636, 24 hours a day, for depression and anxiety support.
- Australian Centre for Grief and Bereavement — 1800 642 066, specialist bereavement counselling and referrals.
- 13YARN — 13 92 76, 24-hour crisis support line for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Online support groups and communities
Online groups are where most Australians find their footing after pet loss, because they are available at 2am and nobody there thinks you are being silly.
Look for moderated Australian pet loss groups on Facebook, the Griefline online forums, and Reddit's petloss community. Choose a moderated group — an unmoderated one can be a rough place to land on a bad night.
Counselling and your GP
Pet bereavement is a legitimate reason to see your GP. If grief is affecting your sleep, appetite, work or relationships for more than a few weeks, ask about a mental health treatment plan — it can subsidise sessions with a psychologist under Medicare.
Some counsellors specifically list pet loss and companion animal bereavement as an area of practice. It is worth asking, because being understood in the first session matters.
Free resources you can download right now
We wrote and published a set of grief resources that anyone can download without giving us an email address or a phone number — including guides for helping children understand, supporting a surviving pet, and getting through the first fortnight.
You can also write a tribute for your pet on our tributes wall. It is free, public if you want it to be, and many families say naming their animal somewhere permanent was the first thing that helped.
- Grief support hub and free PDF library — /grief-support
- Write a tribute for your pet — /tributes/create
- Helping children with the loss of a pet — /grief-support
- Supporting a surviving pet through grief — /grief-support
Questions families ask us
- Is there a free pet loss support group in Australia?
- Yes. Griefline (1300 845 745) offers free telephone and online grief support that includes pet loss, and there are several moderated Australian pet loss communities online. Our own grief resources are also free to download with no email required.
- Is it normal to grieve a pet this hard?
- Yes. Many people grieve a pet as intensely as a human family member, particularly when the animal was part of daily routine or got them through a hard period of life. Intensity is not a sign that something is wrong with you.
- Can I see a counsellor about losing my pet?
- Absolutely, and your GP can help. If grief is affecting sleep, appetite or work for more than a few weeks, ask about a mental health treatment plan, which can subsidise psychologist sessions under Medicare.
- How do I help my child through the loss of a pet?
- Use plain words rather than euphemisms, let them be part of the goodbye if they want to be, and expect the questions to come back weeks later. Our free children's guide on the grief support page walks through it age by age.
- Do I have to be a Harbourside client to use these resources?
- No. Every resource, helpline and support option on this page is free and open to anyone, whether or not your pet was in our care.