Gemma Champ, a writer from north London, rescued her cat Frankie as a kitten 17 years ago, when she lived in Abu Dhabi. Frankie died at home in January, and at first she felt “ridiculous for making such a fuss”.
“I sent out a WhatsApp to all who’d known and loved him – and it turned out everyone had amazing memories of him. He wasn’t just a cat. One friend said it was like ‘a legendary beast from the great plains has left us.’
“We can see from social media that there’s a whole community of people out there who have gone through the same experience and the same pain, so you don’t feel like you’re just being a drama queen – I think that’s definitely how it would have been seen years ago.”
After Greg James’ dog died, the presenter said he wouldn’t be on his show the next day. But getting employers to agree to this isn’t always easy.
In 2019, Emma McNulty’s 14-year-old terrier Millie died suddenly. Feeling sick with grief, McNulty, from Glasgow, said she was too upset to go into work. Unable to find someone to cover her shift, she said her part-time job in a sandwich shop was terminated. She then launched an online petition asking for employers to recognise pet bereavement.
No country mandates that employers offer paid time off after the death of a pet. Kara Stott, head of in-house legal and general counsel at law firm Peninsula, said more UK employers were starting to show flexibility with workers whose pets had died, even if a change to the law does not appear imminent.
But introducing formal pet bereavement policies has its challenges, Stott tells the BBC.
“Points to consider include how do you define a pet – does the policy just cover cats and dogs or would hamsters, rabbits, goldfish, horses, snakes, or other animals be included?”
Gemma, who is freelance, took a few days off work after Frankie’s death, with the support of her “incredibly kind” client. “I doubt I could have done that if I’d been employed,” she says, “and I think I’d have been weeping in the toilets at the office.”
The reaction from friends and family to Frankie’s passing confirmed that her sense of grief was real, she says, and she appreciated that people took it seriously.
“I do think, or hope, that people are learning not to dismiss this very profound and long-lasting relationship so easily.”
