The Rainbow Bridge Poem
The Rainbow Bridge Poem & Ways to Remember a Pet
If you've just said goodbye to a beloved pet, you don't have to find the right words alone. Here is the full Rainbow Bridge poem, more verses for dogs, cats, and any companion you've loved — and a few quiet ways to keep their photos and their story close.
What is the Rainbow Bridge poem?
The Rainbow Bridge poem is a short, widely shared piece of pet-loss writing that imagines a green meadow just this side of heaven where pets who die go to run, play, and grow healthy and strong again. There they wait, happy and content, until the day their person arrives — and the two are reunited and cross the bridge together. Its author is unknown, but the poem has comforted grieving pet owners for decades.
The Rainbow Bridge poem (full version)
This is the traditional, widely circulated prose version of the poem, shared anonymously among pet owners for many years:
Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.
When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.
All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.
They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.
You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.
Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together…
— Author unknown, traditional / public-circulated
A short note on its origin and meaning
No one knows for certain who first wrote the Rainbow Bridge poem. Versions of it began circulating among pet owners and in grief-support circles in the 1980s, and it has been passed hand to hand — in cards, on shelter websites, and at the vet's office — ever since. Its enduring comfort comes from a simple promise: that the love between a person and an animal doesn't end at goodbye, and that the suffering of illness or old age is left behind. For many grieving pet owners, reading it aloud is the first time the tears come — and that's exactly what it's for.
More pet loss poems and readings
If the Rainbow Bridge poem speaks to you, you may want a few more verses to read at a goodbye, write in a card, or keep on your pet's memorial page. Here are some of the most widely shared, grouped by who they suit best.
For dogs
"The Last Battle" (excerpt) — a much-loved reading often shared when a dog is being put gently to sleep, written from the dog's own voice asking their person not to grieve the choice. It begins, in the traditional shared version:
If it should be that I grow frail and weak,
and pain should keep me from my sleep,
then you must do what must be done,
for this last battle cannot be won…
We've had so many happy years —
what is to come can hold no fears.
It's a tender one to read for a dog who gave you their whole life. A gentle two-line keepsake for a dog also works well in a card: "No longer by my side, but forever in my heart. Run free, good dog."
For cats
An "If it should be…" verse for a cat — many pet owners adapt the same gentle idea for a cat who curled into their lap for years:
I will lend to you for a little while
a tiny life all my own, said He,
for you to love while she lives,
and mourn for when she's gone.
A simple line many cat owners keep close: "The house is quiet now where your small paws once were. Thank you for choosing me."
For any pet
These short readings suit a dog, a cat, a rabbit, a horse — any companion you've loved:
- A four-line goodbye: "Do not stand at my grave and weep; I am the warmth of the sun on your face, the soft place you reach for at night, the quiet love that never leaves." (a gentle pet-loss adaptation of a much-shared verse)
- The "Paw Prints" idea: the well-known thought that the loved ones we lose leave paw prints on our hearts — a single line that fits beautifully on a plaque or a card.
- A blessing: "May you run in green fields again, free of pain, until I can hold you once more."
Looking for words for the people too? Our collection of grief quotes has short lines for cards, headstones, and memorial pages — many of which work just as gently for a pet.
How to use the Rainbow Bridge poem
Read it at a goodbye
Whether it's a quiet moment at the vet, a small backyard burial, or a gathering of the people who loved your pet, reading the poem aloud gives everyone permission to grieve together — and to smile at who your pet was.
Write it in a card
A line or two of the Rainbow Bridge poem in a sympathy card says what's hard to say to someone who has lost a pet. Pair it with one specific memory of their animal and it lands far deeper than a printed message.
Keep it on a memorial page or plaque
Add the poem to a free digital memorial page beside your pet's photos, or engrave a single line on a QR memorial plaque at their resting spot — so the words stay where you'll find them.
Other ways to remember a pet
A poem is the words. These are the small, lasting things that hold them — pick the few that feel like your companion.
A free digital memorial page
One quiet place that holds their photos, videos, and the story of their life — and the poem, if you'd like. Free to create, share with family, and keep for years. Create it free.
A paw print keepsake
A clay or ink paw print is one of the most treasured things many owners have — the exact size of the paw that walked beside them. Many vets and shelters offer to take one.
A memorial garden stone
A small engraved stone, a planted shrub, or a corner of the garden set aside in their name gives you somewhere to sit with them. See our memorial garden ideas for gentle layouts.
A QR memorial plaque
A small weatherproof plaque with a QR code that opens your pet's memorial page — for a garden, a bench, or the spot where they rest. A one-time keepsake, added whenever you're ready. See the pet QR memorial plaque.
For more gentle tributes — shadow boxes, custom portraits, donations in their name and more — see our full guide to pet memorial ideas.
Give your pet's photos and story a home
Photos scatter across phones and old folders, and the small stories — the way they greeted you at the door, the spot they always slept — fade faster than we expect. A digital memorial page gathers all of it in one place: their photos, videos, the Rainbow Bridge poem if you'd like it, and the memories your family adds.
- Upload their photos and a video — the wagging tail, the purr, the moment that was unmistakably them.
- Add the poem and your own words — write the story of their life, however long or short.
- Share the link so family and friends can visit, remember, and add their own memories.
- Add a weatherproof QR plaque later — optional — so the page opens right at their resting place.
One simple thread holds it together: a free memorial page that's the heart of it. An optional pet QR plaque is a one-time keepsake that opens the same page at their resting spot — a gentle complement, never a replacement.
Create a free memorial pageA free digital memorial page for your pet
Everything in one place that won't get lost: their photos, the videos, the poem you chose, and the small stories that made them theirs. Share the link with everyone who loved them, and keep visiting it for years.
It's free to create and takes about five minutes. A pet QR plaque is optional and comes later — the page is the heart of it.
Create a free memorial page
What it costs
The digital memorial page is free to create — start free, add your pet's photos, the poem, and their story, and share it with the people who loved them. If you'd like a lasting marker later, the physical pet QR memorial plaque is a one-time keepsake (you'll see the current price on the product page). Begin with the page; add the plaque whenever you're ready.
Rainbow Bridge & pet loss FAQ
The Rainbow Bridge poem is a short, widely shared piece of pet-loss writing that imagines a green meadow just this side of heaven where pets who die go to run, play, and grow healthy and strong again. There they wait, happy and content, until the day their person arrives and the two are reunited and cross the bridge together.
The author is unknown. Versions of the Rainbow Bridge poem began circulating among pet owners and in grief-support circles in the 1980s and have been passed along anonymously ever since — in cards, on shelter websites, and at the vet's office. Several people have been credited over the years, but no single author has ever been confirmed.
A short pet loss poem is a brief verse — often two to four lines — that captures the grief and love of losing a pet, gentle enough to read aloud or write in a card. A common example: "No longer by my side, but forever in my heart. Run free." Short lines like these also work well engraved on a plaque or added to a memorial page.
Keep it gentle and specific. "I'm so sorry — he was such a good boy" or "She was so lucky to have you" mean more than a printed message. Acknowledge the pet by name, share one small memory if you have one, and avoid rushing the person past their grief. A line from a pet loss poem in a card is a kind touch.
Good ways to memorialize a pet include a clay or ink paw print, a memorial garden stone or planted tribute, a free digital memorial page that holds their photos and story, and an optional weatherproof QR plaque at their resting spot. Many owners combine a keepsake they can hold with a memorial page they can visit and share.
You can keep your pet's photos, videos, and the story of their life on a free digital memorial page at Scan2Remember. It's free to create in about five minutes, you can share the link with family, and an optional QR plaque can later open the same page right at your pet's resting place.
Keep their photos, story, and the poem in one gentle place — free, in 5 minutes.
Create a memorial page for your pet, add the Rainbow Bridge poem if you'd like, and share it with everyone who loved them.