Losing a beloved pet can be almost as traumatic as losing a member of the family. We have long recognised that pets need to be remembered and mourned in a similar way to any other bereavement.
A quiet corner of Haycombe Cemetery has been set aside as a final resting place for pets. It is well screened from the rest of the cemetery by a hedge of conifers, which creates a quiet area for those attending the graves there.
Email Bereavement Services at Cemeteries_Crematorium@bathnes.gov.uk, or call 01225 39 60 20 if you need advice.
Burials
We can only bury the bodies of small domestic family pets, such as cats and dogs, and we offer grave spaces suitable for one pet interment. Each pet must be in a coffin, which you can ask us to supply, or you can supply your own. Suitable memorials are also available from local stonemasons, although all memorials do need a permit before they can be brought into the cemetery.
We will treat the burial of your pet with the same care and sympathy with which we would treat anyone else.
Cremation and interment of cremation ashes
We are unable to offer a cremation service for pets.
If you have had your pet cremated and just have the ashes, we can inter them in a dedicated area within the pet section with a small brass coloured plaque. We can also accommodate larger pets (for example, horses) in this way.
Book of Remembrance
There is a Book of Remembrance dedicated to pets, which is kept in the Book of Remembrance room at the Hilltop Chapel. You can have an entry in the Book, even if your pet is not buried at Haycombe.
Entries are made on the date of death and the Book is turned each day to coincide with the current date. This means that on the anniversary of the date that you lost your pet, you will be able to visit the Book of Remembrance, see the entry, and remember.