Bringing Home Ollie's Ashes

[Guest deanna]

Have any of you done any sort of passing ceremony for your bridge angels?

 

I would feel really weird about just bringing Ollie home and putting him on the shelf with out... something. I don't know what to do, and my mind is just shutting down trying to think about it. I get as far as getting in the truck to go pick him up from the vet then, ugh, just the idea that he is a pile of ashes now..

 

Here come the waterworks...

[rschultz]

we took one of our dogs ashes and put it in a flower pot outside and actually put a tree seed in it. A year later we transfered it to the ground. Kind of neat so now he has his own tree

[Trihounds]

So sorry you are having to face this, but when I picked up my Cairo, I felt both tremendous sadness and elation that he was back home. I can't say we did a ceremony, so maybe this isn't helping at all, but I talked to him, wept, and put him on the window sill in a ray of sunlight. I didn't plan it like that, I just did it and it seemed right - for him. He was the greyhound of cats, in every way.

 

Take care of you and Ollie, and even if you don't plan something out, trust that something appropriate for him will happen without you even thinking of it.

[Guest ss556]

I didn't do any sort of ceremony, I just kept Alan's ashes on my dresser with his picture in front of it and decorated around it with gifts that were sent to me after his passing. I kept it there until about 3 weeks ago when I finally put his remains in the urn I bought for him. But I made a scrapbook and a memory box that has his favorite coats, jammies, collars, toys, etc. in it and put that in my living room. I placed my greyhound statue and his picture on a small table where his favorite bed used to be. So, to me that was a celebration of him, not really a ceremony. I did have one friend ask me if I was having "anything" for him. Hugs to you.

[Guest 3greysinPA]

When i went to the vet to pick up my GSD's ashes ,, it felt very surreal..

I was feeling sad and depressed and not sure of what to do either.. but knew that i needed her home with me again.. even if it was just the ashes.

i cried the whole way home as i looked at the beautiful cedar box she was him... it was a beautiful box with a gold plate on the top with her name engraved on it.

anyway.. .. not sure exactly what will be right for you.. but i think once you get Ollie home you will know what feels right...

many hugs to you during this difficult time..

my deepest sympathy to you.

sincerely,

kristin

[CaliforniaGreys]

I don't do cremation so I've never had to pick up ashes. But so many here say that they have such a good feeling when they do.

You're in my thoughts

[Hubcitypam]

Harley and Rex are in their containers on my end table. Harleys urn has his coller and a picture. Rexs has his necklace and a green glass heart on his box.

[Magdalyn58]

We didn't have any sort of ceremony when we picked up Sophie's ashes. I cried a lot. We put the box they came in on a shelf in our TV room, where we'd all spend our evenings. There was a poem that came with her ashes, and a lock of fur and her paw print. I have not yet been able to read the poem because it still hurts too much; Sophie left us the last weekend in April.

 

I guess just knowing that she is back at home with us helps a little. We have since adopted two more greyhounds, and they are wonderful, but I still miss Sophie so much.

 

I'm so sorry you're going through this. It is so hard.

 

[Guest greytexplorer]

I am well-entrenched in the Presbyterian Church (PCUSA). We have an annual Blessing of the Animals services, my pastor and his wife are animal-lovers, ds is in seminary and an animal-lover. I would not hesitate to ask my son or my pastor to come to my house and have a "prayer meeting".

I know how hard this is, and feel for you.

~Pat

[Guest guinness_the_greyt]

I took part of my Harley boys ashes to Sedona... Our favorite place to hike. I took a lot of pics that day that I used in a shadow box that hangs in my bedroom. In the shadow box I put a lil bit of his ashes... pictures... his collar and tags... and his favorite toy - err rather what was left of it. It was just a swatch of fabric in the end... I called it his binky. He hid it all over the house.

 

Here are the pics I put in his shadow box...

 

My favorite and last photo of him.

 

Pic of Brooklyn before we hiked down to the creek to let go of his ashes. (the leash was photoshopped out... as was the ex bf.)

 

 

And finally where I put his ashes

 

 

It gave me a lot of comfort to take him to our favorite spot. Hugs to you... hopefully you will find something that helps you too.

[MandysMom]

I took a walk on Meg's favorite walk while holding the container. I had intended to sprinkle her ashes there, but couldn't bring myself to do so. I brought her home and put the container in my office, where she often laid.

[Guest greyscot]

I have never kept any of my dogs ashes. I've always scattered them where I felt they were happiest. For my last dog (non grey Shirley) DH and I made a 700 mile round trip to where we knew Shirley loved and where she was at the peak of her health. We had spent many happy hours on the beach and in the sand dunes and it just felt right to make that her final resting place.

Hope you find something that comforts you.

[Guest VelvetEars]

I have never kept any of my dogs ashes. I've always scattered them where I felt they were happiest. For my last dog (non grey Shirley) DH and I made a 700 mile round trip to where we knew Shirley loved and where she was at the peak of her health. We had spent many happy hours on the beach and in the sand dunes and it just felt right to make that her final resting place.

Hope you find something that comforts you.

 

Jane was happiest in bed with me. Probably not a good place for me to scatter her ashes.

[Guest deanna]

I have never kept any of my dogs ashes. I've always scattered them where I felt they were happiest. For my last dog (non grey Shirley) DH and I made a 700 mile round trip to where we knew Shirley loved and where she was at the peak of her health. We had spent many happy hours on the beach and in the sand dunes and it just felt right to make that her final resting place.

Hope you find something that comforts you.

 

Jane was happiest in bed with me. Probably not a good place for me to scatter her ashes.

 

 

I've been thinking about scattering some of his ashes at the beach. His other favorite place was the cafe we go to daily. That might be awkward

 

Thanks so much to every one for all of the ideas. Feel free to keep them coming. I can't get his ashes until Monday or Tuesday as we are both out of town right now.

 

d

[Hawthorn]

I've done different things with mine, depending on what feels right. Usually when the ashes first come home, I put them somewhere with a favourite photo and candle and just wait until I know what to do next. Some of Charlie's ashes were scattered on his favourite beach, some on his favourite walk, and the rest we planted in a container with a silver birch tree and a remembrance plaque. Teddy's ashes are buried in the garden with a shrub and a plaque. I always have some sort of remembrance service, which might be a poem I've written, or one that seems appropriate, or just some words. Sometimes I've had several remembrance ceremonies.

 

I think it's important to do what feels right to you and not to feel any pressure to do anything right away. With Charlie's ashes, it took me 2 years before I knew what I wanted to do with them, but with Teddy's I knew very quickly.

 

[Guest ProudGreyMom]

When Benny passed away, I took some of his ashes to his favorite beach. We had a little ceremony for him, looked at pictures, wrote his name in the sand and then released the ashes into the breeze.

 

Jake's ashes will be here probably next week We might take them to VT to an area he loved and return him to the earth.

 

I make pretty boxes for the ashes that we do keep and put their tags and a photo in with them.

 

I am so sorry for your loss.

Edited August 15, 2009 by ProudGreyMom

[Guest Tenderhearts]

Picking up any of my babies' ashes was always bittersweet. They all rest on my piano.

 

:grouphug

[Guest KennelMom]

When we say goodbye, we light one of those devotional candles and say a prayer together....we can get them here in the latin section of the grocery store. When the candle burns out, it's time to pick up their ashes and bring them home. It's also a timer for our mourning. Once the candle burns out, it's time stop feeling sad and start remembering the great times and celebrating their LIFE with us. It helps keep us from getting stuck in a negative and bad place, which I don't think honors a dog's memory or spirit.

Edited August 15, 2009 by KennelMom

[Guest brandi007]

When I received Foxy's ashes I just stood there, hugged him and cried until I was out of tears - I then put him in my bedroom with a beautiful photo of him and give him pets and kisses every time I needed too. He's still there in his beautiful mahogany box, I don't think I could handle ever actually seeing the ashes. I found what helped me also was a friend gave me a 'memory box' with his picture slid in the top. I put all the things that were really his in that box. The collar he died in and his tags, his fave collar, the collar his foster mum sewed for him, his loose leashes graduation certificate, all the condolences cards I got and a picture my niece drew of him for me the night he passed. I love that box - his fur is still stuck to those collars and I don't want one strand getting lost....

 

oyyy....the waterworks.

 

I'm so sorry for your loss of Ollie, that's just not fair when they're taken so young.

[Batmom]

The right thing to do will come to you in time. Maybe sooner, maybe later, no rush.

 

Sending big hugs.

[seeh2o]

When I picked up the ashes of my beloved lab, Chaka, it did make me cry all over again, but it felt right to have her back home. I wouldn't call it elation by any stretch of the imagination, it just felt like that part of things were settled. I was still grieving for her, but the part of her being away from me was over. I didn't have any sort of ritual for her, though I've done my fair share of talking to her over the years (still do). People kept asking me if I was going to scatter her ashes over her favorite place and I always told them (still do) that I refuse to scatter her ashes all over my bed (her absolute favorite place in the world)!

 

My plan is, as my dogs pass, to have them cremated and they stay with me. Then, when I go, I'll be cremated and my instructions are to put our ashes in a big bag, box, or whatever, shake us all up and we will be together again here - and there. At this point I don't know if I want us all to be buried together or scattered together.

Edited August 15, 2009 by ckruzan

[Guest RICHandJUDE]

We have had two greyts who have crossed the bridge. We decided on creamation instead of buial

in case we ever moved from our present house. Both greyt's ashes are in their own

Oak boxes.

 

My wife put some of the ashes in a small plastic baggie. Then she made some small heart-like cache's

out of material. She put a small amount of ashes into the baggies and then inside the caches.

 

We have two caches attached to our sun-visor in each car. This way. our babies always go with us. Last year

when we flew to New York City, the babie's cache's with ashes went in our suitcases.

 

My Dad died 3 years ago. My Mother-in-law (who I loved by the way) died 2 years ago.

I put a cache of each of the dogs into the coffins with my dad and mother-in-law. It made us feel better.

 

The rest of the ashes are in their oak boxes. That is what we did.

 

 

 

[BootsyCollins]

We spread about half of Argos's ashes along the trail that he loved and we hiked daily. At the end of the trail is a park, and while we were spreading his ashes, my sister had gotten a bunch of our dog friends to gather with champagne, and we all raised a glass to Argos.

 

Here is his girlfriend Ella at his "memorial service":

 

 

Here are the dogs (with adult help) signing the memory book that my sister made:

 

 

 

 

It was a really great way to say goodbye, and now we have the rest of his ashes, along with his tags, on a shelf in our house.

 

[lflaherty45]

Nebby has been gone since Jul 3, 2008 and Clark since Feb 11, 2009. I have their ashes in oak boxes with their picture and name and dates on the front. They are on the mantel above the fire place. I have spent many, many hours thinking about what I will do and have decided that when Clark has been gone a full year, I will release their ashes in our yard and the field where they loved to run.

 

I have gone between doing that and keeping them with me. Each time I think about it I end of crying and wondering if I am going to do the right thing. I often think that at the kennel they were always in a crate and locked away, do I want that for them now. Most times it is a big NO, but can I part with them a second time. This is the one thing I can cry about really easy, set them free or not. This is a answer we each have to decide, there are many nice ways above of what others have done. I guess I will know what to do when the time comes.

 

I wish you peace in finding the best answer for yourself.

[maryz]

Nebby has been gone since Jul 3, 2008 and Clark since Feb 11, 2009. I have their ashes in oak boxes with their picture and name and dates on the front. They are on the mantel above the fire place. I have spent many, many hours thinking about what I will do and have decided that when Clark has been gone a full year, I will release their ashes in our yard and the field where they loved to run.

 

I have gone between doing that and keeping them with me. Each time I think about it I end of crying and wondering if I am going to do the right thing. I often think that at the kennel they were always in a crate and locked away, do I want that for them now. Most times it is a big NO, but can I part with them a second time. This is the one thing I can cry about really easy, set them free or not. This is a answer we each have to decide, there are many nice ways above of what others have done. I guess I will know what to do when the time comes.

 

I wish you peace in finding the best answer for yourself.

 

Oh, Linda, remembering your handsome boys,

 

I have my Daisy's and Beady's ashes on a shelf with their pictures next to their boxes. I still talk to them. It gives me

comfort. I'm sure in time, memories of sweet Ollie will bring your heart comfort, too.

Edited August 15, 2009 by maryz