I've only ever explained what actually happened. Our beloved pet died. Nothing fanciful or whatever. We don't make up stories to make it easier to process. One of our cats died suddenly a year ago. The kids were home. They got to say goodbye and hold/see him before he was buried. Including our then-2.5 year old. We told her Mako died. She still remembers it and talks about it. But yeah, we're pretty honest about how we approach the topic.
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