Pet Loss as Companion Bond Severance: The Disenfranchised Grief of Animal Bereavement, Routine Collapse as Secondary Displacement, and the Ethics of Euthanasia Grief

We apply the Displacement Framework to pet loss grief, formalizing the companion bond ground state S°_companion as a six-component equilibrium: physical presence and daily interaction, care routine organized around the animal, unconditional positive regard, social bridge function, emotional regulation (cortisol reduction, oxytocin elevation through petting), and attachment figure security.

Pet death severs all six components simultaneously, producing multi-domain displacement comparable to or exceeding human bereavement in many owners. Nine formal propositions are derived covering: S°_companion as the six-component companion bond equilibrium with basin depth varying by species interactivity, pet death as simultaneous multi-domain companion bond severance, disenfranchised pet grief as D(ξ) accumulation without social permission ('it's just an animal'), the 'get another one' response as a category error equivalent to miscarriage's 'try again' (each individual animal is a specific relationship, not a replaceable category), euthanasia decision as moral D(ξ) added to grief with survivor's guilt and the too-soon/too-late false binary, anticipatory grief as D(ξ) accumulation before the death event when euthanasia is scheduled, routine collapse as secondary temporal and spatial displacement (the house develops a topography of absence), adoption timing as grief bypass (too soon) vs. prolonged Φ accumulation (too late), and social validation of pet loss as D(ξ) reduction through acknowledgment.

The unique features of pet loss — frequent involvement of euthanasia decision, social invisibility, and disruption of daily care routines — are formalized as structural contributors to its distinctive grief profile.