Ben Affleck is said to have spent Thanksgiving with his ex-wife Jennifer Garner to "comfort" her over the death of her beloved dog Birdie

A source told RadarOnline.com: "Jennifer's grief is profound and Ben said (he was) more than happy to spend time with her over Thanksgiving.

"Birdie's death means the holiday will be like old times for the couple, and a lot of their friends want them to get back together.

"Jennifer leads a really wholesome life that was always good for Ben amid his sobriety battle, and their pals think it would do him the world of good to get back with her."

Jennifer told fans in an update before Thanksgiving about Birdie's death: "It is hard to know how to write this - it seems nuts, given the world, to mourn a pet, but since we have shared Birdie with all of you, it only seems fair to let you know of her passing."

The actress added in her post her family had started to notice signs last week things weren't right with Birdie when the "renowned foodie" who "never missed a meal" stopped eating.

They took her to the vet and the actress said they "were surprised to learn that, not only was she very ill, she was at the end of her life".

Jennifer also told how she was told Birdie hung on to say goodbye to her eldest daughter Violet, 18, before she passed away.

She said: "The vet told us that dogs often hang on until their person comes home from college. And we believe Birdie did just that, so that we could pet her soft ears together and thank her for being the world's best dog."

Jennifer added Birdie loved to read and in a carousel of images in tribute to her pet there was a video of her lounging on the sofa as the actress read William Steig's 'Pete's a Pizza' - with both of them wearing glasses in the shot.

The star concluded her tribute with the words: "She lived a happy dog life and is now in the role she was born to play: angel girl.

"It's a gift to love and be loved by such a creature as Birdie the Doggie. (Paw print emojis.)"

Ben and Jennifer have has three children with his 52-year-old actress ex-wife Jennifer - Violet, who is set to turn 19 on 1 December, as well as Seraphina, 15, and 12-year-old boy Samuel.

His ex Jennifer Lopez, 55, is a mother to 16-year-old twins Max and Emme with his 56-year-old former husband Marc Anthony.