Children and the loss of a pet

I've been avoiding this post for two weeks. We put our 16 year-old dog, Joey, to sleep. It was one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do. I got him as a 6 week-old puppy and we had a long, happy, loving relationship. However, it was time to let him go. He had terrible arthritis pain that was no longer responding to medication, and problems with serious incontinence. Though he never complained about his pain, it was clear he was living with too much of it. We decided a day early would be better than a day too late, and I know it was the right thing to do, but I still feel awful about the whole thing.

My son who is 2.5 years-old has not asked about the dog, which I find a bit strange.  The dog was a major presence in our household; he was a family member. At one point while Isaac was playing in his room, he stopped and said the dog's name then went right on playing. I feel certain that he's noticed the dog's absence, but perhaps he doesn't know how to form a question about his whereabouts.

We've thought about putting up a picture of Joey and showing it to my son. But so far it's been too difficult for me to put it together(I am crying as I write this post.) When he finally does ask, or when we finally put up a photo of the dog, we've decided the best explanation we can offer is that Joey died and that we won't see him anymore, but that we can always talk about him and look at his pictures when we miss him. I'm grateful that my son is young enough to be mostly unaffected by the loss.

Have you discussed grief, or the loss of a family pet, with your children?