Not even death will part them
Cat lover Lorraine Kelsen’s connection with her precious pets will go beyond the grave, or in her case, quite literally in it.
The Taranaki woman never wanted children, but for the last 20 years of her life has always had a cat by her side.
And that won’t change in death either. When her time comes, she plans to be buried with the ashes of three feline pets which have already died.
‘‘I’ve decided to have them in my casket and take them with me.’’
And if she outlived her current moggie Moki, there’s a chance an extra space in the coffin would need to be found.
Tracey and Billy Walsh, owners of Paws & Claws Kennel and Cattery, run the only pet crematorium in Taranaki.
Tracey said demand for its cremation service had increased over the seven years they had owned the business and they had recently invested $500,000 on a new cremator.
‘‘It’s definitely getting more popular.’’
As a dog lover, Billy fully understood the sentiment of wanting to retain a close connection with pets, even after death. ‘‘They’re family.’’
He said on the odd occasion he had been asked to dig up a pet previously buried in a client’s backyard before they moved, and arrange cremation in order for the link to be continued.
The couple’s Egmont Rd premises is all set up for pet funerals. It has a purpose-built viewing room, where owners can spend a final moment with their dead pet, before the cremation.
Once the cremains are gathered, Billy said they were placed into special urns or small boxes. They could also be turned into jewellery, depending on the owner’s wishes.
New Plymouth’s Abraham’s Funeral Home manager Mark Baker said arranging for a pet’s ashes to be buried with its owner when they died provided a form of ‘‘comfort’’ to the deceased.
‘‘Having a pet’s ashes put with you is an expression of love and one which helps the grieving process,’’ said Baker, who has been in the funeral business for 21 years.
He said he had heard of living pets being euthanised and cremated to be buried with their deceased owner, but it was very rare as most often the animals
were rehomed.
But an increasing trend Baker had noticed was the presence of pets at the funerals of their dead owners.
In the bulk of services he had taken, it was dogs that were in attendance.
He said with the rise of private venues being used for funerals, rather than churches for instance, requests to have pets present were easier to facilitate.
However, managing the barking provided a unique test regarding his skills as a celebrant.
‘‘That can be an interesting challenge.’’