Scientists have confirmed what many pet owners already know to be true – the death of a pet can hurt just as much as losing a family member. The results revealed that more than one in five Brits think the death of a pet is more distressing than the death of a human. Based on the findings, the experts believe that a pet's death can lead to 'prolonged grief disorder', or PGD. 'People can experience clinically significant levels of PGD following the death of a pet,' the researchers explained in their study. Only the death of a parent (11.2 per cent) and the death of a child (21.3 per cent) were markedly higher.

Source: Daily Mail January 16, 2026 14:38 UTC