Oh, these stories make me terribly sad. I'm so sorry for your losses, and I'm very sorry that your children suffered. I thank you for sharing your children's experiences with me. This is very helpful. Pemberley, I think you are correct: perhaps watching our dog slowly deteriorate will help him prepare for her death, particularly if we talk a lot about it. He has already seen quite a few dead and dismembered birds due to our bird feeder and a particularly efficient predatory cat. However, I'm not sure that he understood the finality of death in the past. While we were visiting my parents over the summer, he also discovered a memorial stone for a boy that passed away. Because he can read, he figured this out on his own and referred to the stone as the "Dead Boy's Rock." He wanted to go see it most days. Thank you Revmom for your suggestion regarding Freddie the Fallen Leaf. I've ordered the book and it should arrive soon. I'll also check the library since, as Evemomma suggested, there must be a lot of books on this issue. This will also help, I'm sure. As you all say, honesty is likely the best policy. Finding out what drives his interest (as Michaela suggested) is also wise. Thanks again to all of you.
