Bengaluru: The pet cemetery at People for Animals in Kengeri has become more than a place where pet owners come to bury deceased animals.
It has become a place where owners extend their attachment to their pets even after death, with some visiting it daily; some come and eat food in front of the cemetery and some go to the extent of bringing animal communicators so that they can connect to the soul of the deceased pet.
Take the example of Satyanarayana M S, who lost his pet labrador Rooney on May 8 this year. He was so attached to Rooney that when it fell sick, he quit his job in Australia and came back to India to make sure his pet got the best possible treatment.
Satyanarayana visits the cemetery every Friday (the day he lost Rooney) and along with his equally devoted mother Geeta Shankar , sits in front of Rooney’s epitaph.
Satyanarayana said, “Six months before his death, we came to know that Rooney was suffering from kidney failure. The doctors in Bengaluru told me he would not survive. I could not take this news. I quit my job and flew down. We controlled his diet and made sure he was healthy. Though I did all this to prolong his stay with me, he had to go one day.”
Two months before Rooney’s death, Satyanarayana had gone and checked the PFA cemetery to make sure his pet was buried in a good spot.
Satyanaryana, who had Rooney for nine years, said, “When I went there, I came to know that they gave space only for a headstone. The thought that people might stamp on the ground beneath which Rooney was buried made me uncomfortable. I wrote a letter to Maneka Gandhi and requested her for a bigger land. I also wanted something special for Rooney and decided to have a colour photo for the same. Today, I feel Rooney is still alive and that’s what he is. Going to the cemetery and placing some flowers and biscuits on his grave makes us feel like we have spoken to Rooney for a while.”
For some, the cemetery is a place where they can carry the tradition they had with their pets while they were alive.
For Bahadur Khan, no festival or special occasion is complete without sharing a meal with his pet Tommy, an Indian mongrel. After Tommy’s death, the pet cemetery has become the place for that special meal.
Khan said, “Tommy was with us for five years and like a younger brother. He was always lucky for me. Every festival we would sit in front of each other and eat our meals. Even today, I sit in front of Tommy in the cemetery and eat the food. Had the cemetery not been there, I would not know how to continue the tradition that I shared with the one creature I loved the most.”
In some cases, the owners had been so attached to their pets that they could not bear the loss and try every means to reconnect with the pets.
The cemetery witnessed one such case when Bengaluru-based Sudha tried to connect with the soul of her pet Candy via an animal communicator.
Sudha said, “After Candy’s death, I just could not concentrate on anything. I kept missing her and wanted to talk to her. I was so used to having her around that the void almost haunted me. I finally decided to visit an animal communicator in hope of connecting with Candy’s spirit. However, nothing helped or gave me complete peace. Today, I have adopted another boxer, which looks exactly like Candy. But even today I visit Candy’s grave every month hoping one day I will be able to reconnect with her.”
1,843 burials
* Since 2011 when the first burial happened there have been a total of 1843 burials which include different kinds of animals like dogs, cats, hamsters, roosters and rabbits. * PFA has taken permission from Animal Welfare Board of India to run the pet cemetery. * The land is on lease from Revenue Department. This is the only pet cemetery in Bengaluru. In all of the branches of PFA, PFA Bangalore is the only shelter which has a pet cemetery.
COST OF BURIAL
The cost of burial is Rs 4,500 for a regular burial and for special ones, it’s Rs 18,000 (small construction on top of the grave), and Rs 25,000 (the whole grave with cement).
NO CREMATION
There are no crematoria at PFA as according to the norms, an area that has a wildlife hospital and rescue centre cannot have any kind of burning activity.
REVENUE GENERATOR
The pet cemetery is the only regular revenue generator for People for Animals. The revenue generated is used to fund the wildlife hospital, rescue and rehabilitation centre and to meet other daily expenses of the centre. About 60 to 70 per cent of revenue for PFA comes from the cemetery.
