Before pet cemeteries were created in the mid-19th century, there were few options for disposing of a beloved dog or cat (or parrot or monkey). In Paris, 5,000 dead animals per year were thrown into the Seine, while north of London 750 dead dogs per week were taken to “rendering” and turned into compost.
But when animal owners tried to bury their prized pets in human cemeteries, people revolted. In 1885 a woman in Scotland held a vigil for her beloved cat Tom and neighbors paid their respects, but when she attempted to bury him in the local cemetery a riot broke out. Tom was taken out of his coffin and his body was returned to its owner.
“In Los Angeles, a widow’s attempt to bury her husband’s dog with him resulted in a court hearing in which she was tried over her mental capacity,” writes Paul Coudounaris. “Faithful Till Death: Pet Cemeteries, Animal Graves, and Eternal Devotion” (Thames & Hudson, out now).
The first plot of land to bury a family pet was set aside in London in 1881, when a friendly Maltese named Cherry was buried in Hyde Park. Cherry spent many happy days in the park, so when the dog passed by her family asked the caretaker to bury Cherry next to her cottage.
When the man agreed, several similar requests were made and granted, turning his property into the first pet cemetery.
“His garden became a visible message in a public park. , , “Pets deserve a dignified death.”
A second pet cemetery was established in Huntingdonshire, created as a commercial enterprise. It proved to be the final resting place for cats and dogs, but also for “rabbits, parrots, snakes, monkeys and rats”, buried at a price of between 5 and 13 shillings depending on the size.
More “turf and bulbs” were added to a plot for a few pence, a classy touch that convinced the King of Belgium and two Siamese princes to bury their beloved friends there.
Perhaps the most famous animal resting place is Le Cimetière des Chiens in Paris. Before its existence pet owners were not allowed to throw their dead animals in the river or on a garbage dump, leaving almost no option for residents of the city of Paris who did not own any land.
The police agreed when a lawyer named Hermois argued that “there is no way to get rid of a dead animal without risking a citation,” so Hermois opened the city’s cemetery for dogs and other domestic animals in 1899. Helped in installation. It became the “most famous” cemetery in the world. Pet Cemetery,” with 16,000 burials in the first 20 years, including faithful greyhound, Emma.
Emma was owned by a fallen Neapolitan princess, a young woman seduced by the vices of Paris who eventually became a cabaret singer and prostitute. The inscription that the girl had carved on Greyhound’s gravesite is still notable.
“In memory of my dog Emma, faithful companion and only friend of my wandering and desolate life.”
Other notable inscriptions are found throughout the world. An English epitaph reads, “Fudge, as dear and sweet as his name.” Bingo out of Atlanta is, “Let a little dog into your heart and he’ll tear it to pieces.”
There is a monument to an unnamed dog in the Arizona desert that teases, “Everyone loved you except Uncle Ted. “Yeah, fuck Uncle Ted.”
Ultimately, no one created pet cemeteries like Americans, whose number exceeded 600 by the 1920s, more than the rest of the world combined. A bone garden was created in Hartsdale for the animals of New York City and still exists today, where more than 100,000 have ever been buried.
Its most famous resident would be Goldflake, a full-grown lion who spent his short life living entirely in the Plaza Hotel with the Hungarian princess who had adopted him. Goldflake was so pampered that he eventually died young of arthritis, caused by his wildly inappropriate diet.
Buried on Pine Ridge outside Boston are Igloo, who accompanied Admiral Byrd to the North and South Poles, and 3 Boston terriers owned by Lizzie Borden.
Cara Glen, outside Atlantic City, includes both “Rex the Wonder Dog” (who performed waterskiing at that gambling arena) and Perry, who was famous for riding a tricycle while chewing pipes on the city’s boardwalk.
The Los Angeles Memorial Pet Park was established in the late 1920s, a cemetery that was called “the Valhalla of dogs and cats of the screen”.
It is the final resting place of animals including Hopalong Cassidy’s horse Topper, who starred in 66 films. The cemetery also became a favorite of many Hollywood stars – including Betty Grable, Lauren Bacall, both Abbott and Costello, and Alfred Hitchcock – who all buried beloved animal companions there. Jerry Lewis housed so many pets at the nearby Pet Haven that they were given an entire section.
If once upon a time the idea of burying a pet seemed absurd, times have changed. For example, in the Gloucestershire village of Blockley, a gravestone stands for a “tamed trout”, a fish whose owner claimed that it would come when called.
In Aspin Hill Memorial Park outside Washington, D.C., there is an unmarked grave for a common house fly, an insect some coworkers believe brings happiness to their office.
However, all burials around the world tell the same story. Humans honor their lost animal friends by cremating and burying them to recognize the invaluable affection and companionship provided by their pets in life.
Or, as the Boston poet Le Baron Cooke said: “I knew love; I had a dog.”
