Lunenburg County chapel provides healing space for mourning dog owners

A chapel for pet owners to mourn their canine companions has opened on Nova Scotia's South Shore.

Barbara Deg was one of the first visitors at Place to Paws on Saturday.

She was there to remember her 11-year-old Irish setter, Skylar, who died this spring.

"I mean, it's still raw," said Deg, who lives in Cole Harbour. "He definitely was a significant part of my life."

The wooden structure, located in the tiny community of Feltzen South, about 16 kilometres southeast of Lunenburg, is run by ElderDog Canada, a charity that finds homes for aging dogs and dogs that seniors can no longer care for.

Situated on 45 acres of wooded land across from the ocean, the $200,000 building was privately funded and has nine metre-high vaulted ceilings and smells of pine.

"It was a chance to just sit there and reflect on life," Deg said of her visit to Place to Paws.

"There's not really a lot of spots where it's OK to just remember the four-footed ones who've gone before us."

ElderDog Canada founder Ardra Cole says many people can feel isolated when a pet dies.

"The last thing they want is to have their grief diminished or devalued by a comment such as, 'Oh are you going to get another one? Or, 'It was only a dog,' or, 'Get over it.' And so having a place that is really intended to honour and support that relationship and that loss is incredibly significant," said Cole.

Losing a dog can be particularly hard on seniors, whether it is because the animal has died or the owner must move into an assisted-care facility.

"This dog is with them 24/7, no judgment, regardless of health, illness, financial status, that dog is loyal and ever-present," Cole said.

One wall of the chapel is adorned with nearly 100 photographs of the charity's elderly dogs that have died. On another, there are shelves where people can leave photographs or artifacts. By the window, there's a spot to write love letters to cherished pets.

Cole was inspired after visiting a place called Dog Chapel in Saint Johnsbury, Vermont. She said people travel from all over the world to visit the small white chapel, and she hopes Place to Paws becomes a similar gathering place.

"There's something very special about having a physical space. I mean, people walk through the door of Place to Paws and it is such an emotional experience," she said.

Deg had to put down her dog in May after he suffered many years of health issues. The two went through a lot together, she said.

She first got Skylar to help manage her post-traumatic stress disorder and said, "he kind of gave me a will to live."

Mourning him is a process that will take time, she said.

"They are family so you grieve for them the same way you would a human member."

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