For one in five people, losing a pet has been more distressing than losing a human loved one. New research has revealed that 21% of those who experienced both types of bereavement found their pet’s death harder to bear.

The findings challenge how society views pet loss. It’s often dismissed as “disenfranchised grief” — a type of mourning that isn’t socially recognised or validated in the same way as other bereavements.

Yet for most pet owners, their animals are family. A 2025 survey by the animal charity RSPCA found that 99% consider their pets part of the family rather than “just a pet”. On Instagram, #dogsarefamily alone has 3.4 million posts.

The latest study of 975 British adults revealed something striking. Around 7.5% of people who’d lost pets met clinical criteria for “prolonged grief disorder” — comparable to rates following many human deaths.