A dignified final resting place for pets

With animals treated as part of the family, until recently there was nowhere in Cyprus to bury them with the same respect. Now there is

For most people, pets are part of the family, and their loss can be as painful as losing a close relative. But what happens after a beloved companion dies? This is what Angels Pet Cemetery founder Angelos Petevinos asked himself as he embarked on a mission to open the first licenced companion animal cemetery in Cyprus.

His idea came to fruition about three years later “after a lot of pressure” on the relevant authorities, and he has been running Angels Pet Cemetery, located in Deftera, since this June. The pet cemetery offers a full range of services, from transportation to the facility, to burial or cremation, and even pet caskets and memorial plaques.

Burying pets though is hardly a new concept. Near Cairo, archaeologists uncovered a vast animal necropolis full of mummified cats and even lions, dating back thousands of years. Some of the animals were buried in sarcophagi alongside amulets and jewellery, treated with the same reverence as humans. As Petevinos explained, in Cyprus dead pets are usually cremated en masse alongside dead animal waste from cattle farms, which seems like quite an undignified way to go.

The idea to open a pet cemetery came to Petevinos when considering his options after his own pet’s passing, which led to the realisation that no such facility existed in Cyprus. “At least not officially,” he told the Sunday Mail, explaining that some unlicenced facilities operate around the island. The creation of a cemetery seemed to Petevinos like a no-brainer, especially after seeing them in other European countries, including Greece.

At the same time, he said he saw the need for a pet cemetery as a matter of public health, as pet owners who don’t want to cremate their pets are often forced to bury them in their gardens or public spaces, which could pose a threat when done without taking the necessary precautions. “This is really dangerous, for a number of reasons,” he said.

Aside from the unpleasant smells and the insects and wild animals the body could attract, if a pet has died of a disease, its body can spread it to other animals or humans, while any medication used, like antibiotics or for euthanasia, could contaminate the groundwater and plants where the animal is buried. “People will bury their 20kg dog under their lemon tree and then eat the lemons and think it’s all good, but the reality is that this animal will keep decomposing for a good while, contaminating everything around it”.

Petevinos did initially meet some resistance from the Deftera council, but eventually he managed to secure the space where Angels Pet Cemetery now operates. As opposed to unlicenced facilities, whose locations he did not disclose, Angels is in accordance with EU regulations, while the licences he secured for the space mean it can only be used as a pet cemetery, so there is no risk of the land eventually being used for something else.

Asked about the public’s response to the pet cemetery, he said he did not get the response he expected. He was inundated with calls in the first month, from members of the public congratulating him on the initiative, and others wanting to bury their pets at the facility, but interest seems to have waned, and it hasn’t been easy. “People think it’s a brilliant idea until they hear the prices, which mind you, are half of what you’d get charged at an unlicenced place”. Having your pet buried at Angels could set you back €300, which is how much it would cost to lease the grave for three years. After that there is an additional yearly charge of €80. Pets can either be buried individually or communally, while a cremation option is also offered. An individual grave can also have a headstone, and all burials come with a certificate.

Petevinos also seemed a little disappointed with the authorities in general, saying that the veterinary services have not done much to stop unlicensed facilities from operating despite knowing they do not follow the proper proced

ures. “When I alerted them to it, they asked me to name names and point fingers. Why would I do that? It’s not my job to catch these people”. At the same time, he said that despite informing vets of the existence of the cemetery so that they can in turn tell their customers, most don’t even give them options about what to do when their pet dies.

Despite this, he is determined to continue working on his vision to give pets a dignified final resting place, and owners a space to visit their beloved companions and honour their memory like any members of their family.

“This is something that should have already existed,” he said. “In my opinion, I’m ten years too late”.

Angels Pet Cemetery, Deftera, Nicosia. Tel: 94 040667, https://www.petcemetery.com.cy/en/