When Ilene Lieber first rescued golden retriever Zoey, the two became inseparable. Lieber was thrilled to be known as “Zoey’s mom” and even wrote a children’s story about her: “Zoey’s Adventures to the Ice Cream Shop.” Then, Zoey passed away after 12 1/2 years together; the grief Lieber felt was intense.
“She really was and still is the love of my life. So beautiful and so sweet and funny,” Lieber said. “And you know, you love hard, you grieve hard, and I miss her.”
The grief Lieber felt led her to look for support. Unable to find an in-person group in Orlando, she joined a weekly online group through Laps of Love. “It just saved me. It saved me just to know that once a week I had support,” Lieber said. “Just to be in a community where people were just like me — that their dogs are their children and losing them — it just completely impacted their lives, just like losing Zoey has impacted my life. People that understood.”
While the online support helped, Lieber wondered if there were others in the area who also needed support and might appreciate the opportunity to meet in person. In September 2025, after earning a grief companioning certificate, Lieber founded the Orlando Pet Loss Support Group. The group is free to join and meets downtown on the first Tuesday of every month at The Woodruff at Lake Lucerne, which has offered the venue for the meetings free of charge.
Radio host “Supa Dave” has attended from the first meeting, finding support after the loss of his dog, Lois Lane. “It was exactly a month and one day since I had lost Lois. It was myself, Ilene, and two other ladies. I’m the big, tattooed, long-bearded biker-looking dude. And who do you think was the biggest crier of the group?…