About Me

Speciality Together with the support of your Veterinarian, Pet Bereavement Services will help you travel through each phase of grief, be there to listen, and help you arrive at a place of acceptance and resolution. In cases of deep psychological grief Pet Bereavement Services maintains a list of professionals to whom referrals can be made for additional assistance. These specialists include Psychotherapists who are familiar with the complexities of Pet Loss Bereavement.

 

Education Colleen Rolland, in addition to an Honours Bachelor’s Degree, and a Master’s Degree, has been certified as a Pet Loss Grief Recovery Specialist through the American Association of Health Care Professionals in 2014, and trained as a Pet Bereavement Counsellor with the renowned Dr. Wallace Sife in 2014, a private practice Psychologist and founder of the Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement.

Pet Loss and Grief Support-Related Volunteer Experience

President, Chairperson Board of Directors, Training Instructor
Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement
2019 – present

Deputy Trainer & Director/Chairperson, Board of Directors
The Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement
2015 – present 

Editor and Contributor to Quarterly Member Newsletter
Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement
2024 – present 

Assistant Editor and Contributor to Quarterly Member Newsletter
Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement
2023 – 2024 

Editor and contributor to Monthly Volunteer Newsletter
Association for pet Loss and Bereavement
2023 – present

Pet Loss Research & Scholarship

  • Crossley, M. K. & Rolland, C. R. (2026, June 12). Companion Animal End-of-Life and Loss: Veterinary, Caregiver, and Organizational Perspectives
  • Crossley, M. K. & Rolland, C. R. (2026, April 21). APLB Pet Loss Grief Specialist Certification. Encyclopedia of Mental Health Certifications.
  • Crossley, M. K. & Rolland, C. R. (2025, October 22). Meeting the needs of pet grief: How one organization fosters healing after loss. Bereavement in the Context of Veterinary Medicine.
  • Crossley, M. K. & Rolland, C. (2022, November 25). Overcoming the social stigma of losing a pet: Considerations for counseling professionals. Human-Animal Interaction Bulletin. doi.org/10.1079/hai.2022.0022
  • Crossley, M. K., Rolland, C., & Resa, M. (2021). Association for pet loss and bereavement (APLB) Pet Loss Grief Specialist Training. Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement.
  • Crossley, M. K., Curotto, N., & Montgomery, T. (2025, April). Navigating pet loss and bereavement for animal welfare professionals. [Moderated Workshop]. Humane World for Animals 2025 Animal Expo, Las Vegas, NV. (contributed to development of presentation)
  • Crossley, M. K., Friedrich, B., & Rolland, C. (2023, June). Honoring the Bond: Supporting Clients after the Loss of a Pet. [Poster Presentation]. AMHCA 2023 National Conference, New Orleans, LA.

These 4-hour presentations were a component of a 2-year continuing education program for mental health professionals and veterinarians in Italy; the program is approved by the Italian Government.

  • Crossley, M. K. & Rolland, C. R. (2024, March). Psychological skills in veterinary medicine: Some tools for managing critical situations. Educational Project "Beyond the species - Psychology of the Relationship between Humans and Companion Animals"
  • Crossley, M. K. & Rolland, C. R. (2023, December). Case History: The Experience of the Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement. Educational Project "Beyond the species - Psychology of the Relationship between Humans and Companion Animals"
  • Bernardi, S., Dougherty, K., Rolland, C. (2025, October). Toronto Psychoanalytical Society. [Special Extension Course-Virtual Webinar] Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • Rolland, C. (2025, April). Deconstructing a pet loss grief session. [Virtual webinar] Rhode Island College, RI, USA
  • Rolland, C. (2025, June). The role of a pet loss grief specialist. [Presentation] Rotary Club of Ancaster, Ontario, Canada.
  • Crossley, M.K., Montgomery, T., Rolland, C. (2025, June). Sustaining compassion in a field built on compassion and hope. [Virtual Webinar] Humane World for Animals. Washington, DC, USA
  • Abernathy, J., Galletti, G., Gervais, K., Lawlor, K., Montgomery, T., Rolland, C. (2025, June). The weight they carry. [Virtual Webinar] Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement and Podcast Pets Are Families.
  • Rolland, C. (2023, July). Pet loss grief support. [Virtual Webinar] International End-of-Life Doula Association. Jersey City, New Jersey, USA
  • Crossley, M. K. & Rolland, C. (2023, August). Destigmatizing loss: Responding to clients navigating the loss of a pet. [Virtual webinar] Human-Animal Interaction, APA Division 17, Section 13.
  • Crossley, M. K., Rolland, C. (2022, December). Resolving grief: Responding to clients navigating the loss of a pet. [Virtual Webinar] Quantum Photonics Fireside Chat
  • Rolland, C. (2021, May). Pet Loss Grief Specialist. [Virtual Webinar] Southwestern Ontario Military Family Resource Centre. London, Ontario, Canada
  • Gill, Lauren (2024, February 4). Grieving the loss of a pet? They want to help. New York Times. (quoted interview) nytimes.com
  • The Morning Show, NPR Radio (2024, April 29). Should people get bereavement leave for the death of their pet? [Audio segment] npr.org
  • LaCross, J. (2024, March/April). Loss. Just Labs. vol. 23 no. 6, pp. 14–19. (quoted interview) justlabsmagazine.com
  • Bologna, Caroline (2023, October 26). How long should you wait after losing a pet to get another one? Huff Post. (quoted interview) huffpost.com
  • The Frenshe Editors. (2022, June 17). This is the healthy way to cope with pet loss. (quoted interview) frenshe.com
  • Becker, K. (2022, March 24). Navigating the Loss of a Pet with Colleen Rolland, Pet Grief Awareness Week. [Virtual Interview] Dr. Karen Becker, Healthy Pet. barkandwhiskers.com
  • Fleck, M., Reed, C. (2021, March 7). Pet Loss, dognapping, and pet tax. [Virtual Interview] The Pet Buzz Radio Show.
  • Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement (APLB)
  • Not One More Vet (NOMV)
  • International Association of Veterinary Social Workers (IAVSW)
 
 
 
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My Contact Information

info@petbereavementservices.com

T: 905-570-3103