A clip from Keeping Up With the Kardashians has got us feeling all kinds of sympathy toward Kim Kardashian. Why? Because her daughter North West's pet hamster died. How can we not feel sympathetic? After all, what mother wants to tell her child that a beloved pet is gone?
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In the clip, Kim is chatting with her sister Khloé, which seems fitting because Khloé is the one who gifted the pet hamster to North without asking for permission first. Seriously, who does that? You have to see how it all plays out.
At first, she's in denial.
Kim's on speakerphone when her assistant comes over and tells her that the hamster hasn't been moving and she might want to come take a look. Kim's not ready to accept it and says, "Maybe he's sleeping."
"And by the way your hamster died."
Khloé is on the phone listening to everything that is happening. When it's confirmed that the hamster, whose name was Blacktail West, is indeed dead, Khloé asks if North has seen him yet. Fortunately, North is at school, but Kim is stressed about how she's going to slip "and by the way your hamster died" into the conversation when her daughter comes home. Considering how hard North took not being able to wear her mom's pink snakeskin boots, we can only imagine how hard the death of her pet will hit her.
Kim takes some of her frustration out on Khloé
She tells Khloé, "This is why you don't get someone a pet. Don't ever do this to me again. I literally hate you." Can you blame her? Perhaps we can all learn a lesson from this and not buy pets for someone else's kids without approval from the parents. Just sayin'.
What *do* you say when your child's pet dies?
Children understand death in different ways, depending on their age and where they are developmentally. Abigail McNamee, PhD, EdD, chair of the Department of Early Childhood and Childhood Education at City University of New York says each child is different and you should consider questions like, "How many experiences has your child had with death? How have you talked with him or her about death? What's been seen on television?"
It's up to you how you deliver the news, but what you should absolutely do is be honest and direct so that your child doesn't get confused. For example, if you tell a really young child that his pet "went to sleep," he may think that pet could someday wake up.
How will Kim tell North?
Well, we'll have to wait until the episode airs to find out. In the meantime, you can watch the clip.
Hoping that Kim finds the best way possible to share the sad news with North. Sending love and hugs to North and R.I.P to Blacktail West.
