In Germany, an animal burial can be a real funeral service and a burial in a real cemetery. However, some things are forbidden. An insight into the world of animal undertakers and crematoria.
Our cat is buried at our home. After he died at the age of 18, we buried him under the lawn in his favorite place in the garden. Wait a minute – are you actually allowed to do that? And how do animal burials actually work in Germany today? What would have happened if we had left the dead cat at the vet after euthanizing it and not taken it home again?
Animal burials are a topic in Germany that more and more people are becoming interested in. No wonder – there are around 34 million dogs, cats, small animals and pet birds living in this country, as the pet supplies industry association announced in mid-April. Many of these animals are real family members.
Animal burial: Many things are possible, from a grave under the lawn to a diamond
But what do owners do after the cat, dog or horse dies? The sadness is often great. Can a farewell ceremony and burial in a pet cemetery or in a litter bed help to cope with the loss? Here are a few questions and answers about animal burial.
Can I bury my deceased animal in the garden?
Back to our tomcat: Yes, you can bury your pet in your home garden if you follow the rules.
The animal grave must be at least 50 centimeters deep and it must not be in public places, streets or paths. It is also essential to keep a safe distance from fountains or public bodies of water. Anyone who lives in rent must ask their landlord for permission.
But be careful: sometimes special regulations apply in the respective municipality. The local veterinary office can also answer questions about this.
It is generally forbidden to bury pets in the garden if it is located in a water protection area. Burying the dead body in a plastic bag is also not allowed. If at all, use containers that decompose, such as fabric or wood.
It goes without saying that we are talking about smaller and medium-sized animals. If it died of an infectious disease such as rabies, burial in your own garden is also prohibited.
Simply disposing of your dead cat in the garbage can is just as forbidden as burying it in the city park.
What if I leave the dead animal at the vet’s office after euthanizing it?
A dead animal can also remain in the veterinary practice – the veterinarians will then hand it over to the carcass disposal, where slaughterhouse waste or dead circus animals also end up. The costs vary regionally and are usually quoted in double-digit amounts, starting at around 20 euros.
How much pet owners have to pay for the disposal of the dead body can be found at the veterinary practice. However, many people find it disrespectful to simply throw their beloved household members into a kind of soulless recycling.
Are pet cemeteries a new phenomenon?
No, not at all. Aside from ritual animal burials and embalming, such as in ancient times, there has long been a need in modern times to bury pets in a similar way to burying people.
A particularly well-known example is the Hartsdale Pet Cemetery near New York, which was opened in 1896 by New York veterinarian Samuel Johnson. The area, where around 80,000 animals have found their final resting place to date, is on the visiting agenda of many New York tourists.
Near Paris, the Cimetière des Chiens from 1899 is world famous – and a listed building. However, there is an important difference to human burials: animals are usually cremated.
How many animal cemeteries are there in Germany?
The Federal Association of Animal Undertakers (BVT) counts around 120 animal cemeteries across Germany. In most cases, the dead bodies are cremated, i.e. burned, before their ashes are buried. According to BVT, this happens in around 30 animal crematoria nationwide. The number of animal undertakers in Germany has been growing for years, says Carsten Weber, second chairman of the association. There are currently around 200 animal undertakers nationwide.
Weber runs such a company himself, Pax Animalis from Darmstadt. The growing number of pets and the importance they have in many families also means an increasing demand for animal burials. The market is now even competitive, as Weber’s industry colleague Arndt Nietfeld says. He is the owner and managing director of the Rosengarten animal burial.
How can I imagine an animal burial?
There is no general answer to this question because the options are even more numerous than for human funerals.
For example, you can have an undertaker pick up the euthanized animal from the vet or take it to an animal crematorium yourself. There is a choice of whether to be cremated together with others or individually.
In the case of an individual cremation, the owners receive their animal’s ashes back, for example in an urn. The ashes can be scattered or buried in a pet cemetery. In some places, shared grave sites for urns for humans and animals are also possible.
After a communal cremation, i.e. the cremation of several dead animals at the same time, the ashes are scattered in a memorial area that can be visited again and again. Pax Animalis and the Rosengarten animal burials, among others, offer such places to mourn and remember.
Pet undertakers even hold small funeral services where the animal is laid out before cremation. Owners can gather there and say goodbye in silence. “We first prepare the room in which the animal will be placed,” says Weber. This is done with candles and floral decorations. Recently saying goodbye to a small dog was particularly emotional. Around eight people mourned the death of the Chihuahua. The owners said goodbye to their little companion for about half an hour before the animal was taken to be cremated. On average, such small, private funeral services cost 80 to 100 euros. They are without a eulogist.
“More options than at someone’s funeral” – what does that mean?
Pet undertakers also offer memorabilia. These can be jewelry pendants into which ashes are filled. Or a plaster paw print. Even diamonds can be made, for example from parts of ashes or fur. Such a special gemstone costs around 2,000 euros for a cat, explains Carsten Weber from the Federal Association of Animal Undertakers.
My beloved horse has died – can I have him buried too?
Yes, since 2017 it has also been allowed to cremate horses in Germany, as Arndt Nietfeld from the Rosengarten animal burial explains. His company therefore has four suitable crematoria. “The cremation of a horse takes up to eight hours,” says the animal undertaker.
How much does a pet burial cost?
This also varies and depends on the weight of the animal and whether its body is picked up and cremated individually or collectively. Does the urn simply go home with you afterwards or do you want a grave site? How long should the lying time be in a pet cemetery?
Price lists and cost examples can be found on the providers’ websites. “If a cat dies, the all-round package including collection of the dead animal from the veterinary practice, transfer to the crematorium, cremation plus an urn in the medium price range costs around 300 to 400 euros,” calculates animal undertaker Weber. “It’s around 100 euros cheaper for a communal cremation.”
For a horse up to 150 kilograms, for example, individual cremation at Rosengarten Animal Burial costs 990 euros.
What do pet undertakers have to be able to do and how much do they earn?
Animal undertaker is not an apprenticeship, explains Arndt Nietfeld. The salaries in animal burial are comparable to those in food retail.
Anyone who wants to work at Rosengarten must complete a special IHK qualification program. His company also hires career changers, as he reports. These come from the veterinary sector, for example. Finding suitable employees is sometimes not that easy. On the one hand, they have to love animals and, on the other hand, they have to be able to communicate with grieving pet owners. “Animal undertaker is a meaningful activity,” says Nietfeld. “It is not our goal that people no longer feel sad when their pet dies. But they should go home with a good and comforting feeling.”
Why do people even want to have their animals buried?
Rosengarten owner Nietfeld has been observing how the status of pets is changing for years. This also changes the way you say goodbye to them. “The dog used to come with us on hunts or was the farm dog, cats were there to catch mice,” he says. “Now the dog is part of the family.” A dignified burial is important to many people.”
He has also experienced extreme examples over the years, such as that of a married couple whose house burned down. The dog suffocated in the basement. Nietfeld still remembers that the grief for the dog outweighed the pain of losing the house. “He was like a child to the people.”
Which people have their animals cremated and buried in a pet cemetery?
In general, the research for this article revealed that there are apparently no typical customers. Young people, older people, families and singles come to them, says Weber. However, there are differences between urban and rural areas. “In Germany, demand is greater in metropolitan areas than in rural areas, where people also have gardens in which they can bury their animals,” observes the animal undertaker.
98 percent of the time dogs and cats are cremated, he says from his experience. Sometimes there are other pets such as guinea pigs. “Or even koi carp.
Sources: Rose Garden Pet Burial, Pax Animalis, Federal Association of Animal Morticians, German Cemetery Society, “Frankfurter Allgemeine“, Arag, Pet Supplies Industry Association, Animal carcass disposal Thuringia, NTV.de, Hartsdale Pet Cemetery