Pet funerals and memorials Pet funerals are becoming more common, with some cemeteries offering multiple or tiered burials, where a number of cremated pets or multiple burials are placed in a single grave. Funeral and memorial providers offer burial and cremation services, and provide caskets, urns, and grave markers designed specifically for pets. Like a human funeral home, a pet funeral facility may include a viewing room, an arrangement room, a reception area, and a room with merchandise. If desired, pet loss specialists can provide information geared to parents and children to help them discuss death. Often a child’s first loss is a pet. This type of information is very helpful but must be geared to the appropriate age group. Coexisting services Given the novelty, in some areas, some traditional funeral directors may feel uncomfortable about conducting or arranging pet services. Concurrently, there is a concern that it will jeopardize human services by alienating current clientele. Some studies suggest that those who decide to attend to both human and nonhuman aftercare may find it beneficial to position these businesses as two separate entities in clearly distinct facilities. This makes practical sense, as each facility requires different sizes of retort and caskets, as well as different keepsake items. In some cases, this is a legal requirement. The state of Florida, for example, does not allow a pet retort to be located within the same facility as a human retort. Combined human and pet burial grounds Some pet owners would like to be buried with their pets. In England, a small number of cemeteries are providing sections where people and pets can be buried together. This practice is just beginning in the U.S., but this type of burial arrangement is prohibited in many states. Policies are changing in response to the demand, and some new laws facilitate placing humans and pet remains together. Florida residents who want to be buried with their dog, cat, parrot, or other pet, for example, may do so under a law created in 2007 informally called the Felix and Fido Amendment that allows people to be buried with the ashes of their pet as long as the animal’s cremains are in a separate container. According to Elderlaw (2022), “Most states either have laws specifically prohibiting pets and humans to be buried together or are silent on the issue. But a growing number of states are adopting laws allowing some form of combined burial.” At least four states have laws allowing some form of combined burial, and the list will undoubtedly grow as demand increases. Death notices for pets Websites and publications such as newspapers and newsletters provide another opportunity to formally post or list a death notice to commemorate a pet or let people know when a memorial service will be held. More newspapers are including a pet obituary section near the pet section of the paper. Some publications and online sites allow individuals to post photos or articles about a beloved pet. The demand for pet obituaries, like that for funeral or memorial ceremonies, is growing. Newspapers in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Tucson, Arizona; and Youngstown, Ohio, all have pet obituary sections. Many pet loss centers and pet Trusts for long-term pet care The Uniform Probate Code (UPC) adopted by the 1990 National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws changed probate law to include a provision allowing for the care of a pet after the owners’ death. Section 2-907(b) allowed
There are many beautiful ways to commemorate pets. Both home and cemetery burial provide an opportunity to create a permanent memorial to one’s pet using a grave marker, statue, or perhaps a tree planted over the pet’s grave to serve as a living memorial. Pet funeral products can include: ● Music. ● Floral arrangements. ● Urns. ● Caskets. ● Grave markers. ● Video tribute/slide show. ● Stationary/memorial notices. ● Keepsakes. ● Garden memorials. ● Cards. In some cases, however, human and pet services coexist successfully. Certainly, more people are requesting to be buried or cremated with a companion animal, and because so many senior citizens own pets and may have a need for pet cremation services, industry professionals have wondered if they should attempt to combine human and pet services in one facility or keep them distinct. Since there are no clear statistics, it is best to follow community standards and practices regarding decisions about comingling services. Current trends suggest there need be no stigma associated with pet services if the services and products are handled ethically and professionally, and clients’ emotional needs are met. New York and New Jersey allow cremated human remains to be buried with a pet, but only in a pet cemetery. Since 2006, Pennsylvania has allowed cemeteries to have three sections, one for humans, one for pets, and an area for both. Virginia passed a law in 2014 permitting cemeteries to have clearly marked sections where pets and humans may be buried alongside one another. However, the pet must have been a companion animal under Virginia law and must have its own casket (Elderlaw, 2022). Funeral directors may exercise discretion when they have a request to place personal objects such as the cremated remains of a pet in the owner’s coffin. “Not a day goes by when I do [not] put an urn of an animal into the casket of a human being secretly for a family,” Coleen Ellis, co-chair of the Pet Loss Professionals Alliance (PLPA). "So, while it's been going on for a very long time, the trend is becoming more recognized where people are getting permission to do it" (Elderlaw, 2022). tribute sites make it easy to post information. There are also websites associated with memorializing pets. Many have no association with other death industry or funeral services but provide a location where pet owners can express grief openly for their pet. Web support groups also are associated with pet loss sites. At sites such as http://www.critters.com, pet owners and professionals can post a memorial, including text, photos, a slide show, and music, which are kept forever in an archive. Custom memorials include layout and design services as well as scanning and placement of photos, with increasing fees for more services.
enforceable trusts for the care of a designated domestic animal and the animal's offspring. In 2000, the provision was updated, and Section 408 of the Uniform Trust Code (UTC) addressed a trust for any animal, authorizing persons with an interest in the
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