To cherish the "now" with your beloved cat: 5 pet loss prevention books you should read beforehand

When I lost my beloved cat, my mind went completely blank, and I couldn’t believe what was happening before my eyes. Even in that state, the reason my body was able to move and say, “I have to do what needs to be done after death,” was because I had gained knowledge about the end of life and care after passing through various books beforehand.

In this article, I am introducing five books on coping with pet loss that I found truly helpful. While it is natural to want to look away from books about death, having the resolve to face it head-on might allow you to cherish the time you spend with your beloved cat even more.

A terminal care book that makes understanding end-of-life care easy through “manga”

Books about terminal care and end-of-life arrangements can sometimes feel difficult because they use medical terminology. However, “Manga de Yomu Hajimete no Neko no Terminal Care/Mitori” (Authored by Neko Biyori Editorial Department / Illustrated by Nanaon and Rika Onozaki / Supervised by Noriko Furuyama and Tomomi Nishimura / Nittoshoin Honsha) allows you to easily understand how to care for a cat at the end of its life through the life story of a cat named “Mosuke.”

It is also a great point that it doesn’t just introduce care methods, but also teaches the mindset and preparedness required of an owner. It might be a good idea to read it together with your family and discuss how to make your beloved cat even happier and how to provide a final departure that protects their dignity.

This is a book I want you to pick up for your own self-care when your cat’s nursing care begins or when an illness is discovered.

What about types of funerals and memorial services? A cat “end-of-life planning” book that answers what you want to know

When you say goodbye to a beloved cat for the first time, you have to research and gain knowledge yourself on things like what preparations to make and how much it will cost.

But that process is extremely tough. I think it makes the heart even heavier during the most mentally painful period after pet loss, and if you are currently nursing them, you may want to pour all your energy into the present moment with your cat, making it difficult to prioritize “researching.”

For those people, I recommend “Pet o Yasukani Okuru Shukatsu no Subete” (Shufunotomo), which eases the anxiety of a first-time end-of-life experience.

You can learn in detail about types of funerals and how to choose a service provider, and it provides an opportunity to think deeply about, “What kind of final moment do I and my beloved cat desire…?”

Furthermore, this book includes knowledge useful after the passing, such as how to inter remains and how to perform memorial services, so it is recommended not only as a book for coping with pet loss but also for owners who have already experienced it. Keeping one in your home should make it a reassuring ally.

Knowing how to protect your cat during a disaster is also “pet loss prevention”

When we talk about “parting with a beloved cat,” it is easy to think of death from illness or sudden passing, but anyone could face an unexpected end due to a disaster.

That is precisely why I believe it is important not only to have simple end-of-life books but also to acquire knowledge that allows you to prepare for a “potential farewell” from multiple perspectives.

“Ketteiban Neko to Issho ni Ikinokoru Bousai BOOK” (Edited by Sonoko Tomita / Supervised by ANICE and Shiro Muranaka / Nittoshoin Honsha) is a practical book that allows you to simulate, “What is the best choice to protect my cat?” when disaster strikes.

It explains the best evacuation methods and also includes first aid for when your cat gets injured, which is very helpful. Because there are many discoveries to be made like, “I hadn’t thought about it from that perspective…,” it should be useful even for those who have already made disaster preparations.

A practical book to learn correct knowledge and how to face “cancer” in cats

Cancer (malignant tumors) is a leading cause of death not only for humans but also for cats. Following urological diseases like kidney disease, cancer is one of the most common illnesses that cats suffer from.

In fact, my beloved cat Gigi also passed away from cancer. “I never imagined my child would get cancer…” When it happened, I was stunned, and I realized for the first time how close a disease cancer really is.

So that you don't have to experience what I did, I want you to read “Neko no ‘Gan’ ~Tadashiku Shitte, Mukiau” (Tetsuya Kobayashi / Nekonekko) as something that could happen to you.

Cancer is truly a disease for which it is difficult to obtain necessary information. Owners are left worrying about treatment choices and unsure about how to provide palliative care, so having a cat-specific book on cancer is very reassuring.

Moreover, the supervisor is a leading expert in veterinary clinical oncology, so the reliability is high. The book is also visually accessible with illustrations and graphs, allowing you to thoroughly understand the necessary knowledge from scratch.

I want this to be picked up not only by those who are currently nursing a cat and worrying, “Is there anything else I can do?,” but also by those who cannot imagine a future where their cat suffers from cancer.

Filled with the pet love of famous people! A self-care book to lean into the grief

I wrote that I would introduce books I have actually read… but I apologize. The book I will introduce after this is one I discovered on X after my pet loss, and I felt, “I wish I had obtained this beforehand…”

After you lose your beloved cat, you feel incredibly alone. Even if you know in your head that there are many people who have felt or are feeling the same way, I think you feel a sense of isolation, like, “Am I the only one who is in this much pain?”

“Pet o Aishita Hitotachi ga Pet Loss ni Tsuite Katatta Koto: Sakka, Artist-tachi no 152 no Kotoba” (Authored by Sarah Bader / Translated by Yayoi Sato and Yasue Mogi / Film Art, Inc.) feels like it has the power to draw close to that kind of heart.

(Source: Amazon)

Collected in this book is the love for animals expressed by over 100 famous people. It is no exaggeration to call them famous quotes; many of the 152 phrases and 24 essays about pets overlap with the feelings inside me, and they bring a little comfort.

I thought, “I’ll definitely sob…,” so I have only checked the internal pages posted on Amazon, but even just doing that makes my heart tighten…. I hope to purchase this book within this November, which marks a turning point of six months since my cat’s death.

To face the deep sorrow of pet loss, it is also important to gain knowledge and information that can protect both your own heart and your beloved cat. Besides the books introduced here, there are many other books for coping with pet loss, and since I think the information people seek varies, please use this as an opportunity to find a book that can serve as “our personal pet loss strategy.”

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