editor’s Note: Eric Tourigney is a lecturer in historical archeology at the University of Newcastle, UK. His research interprets historical texts as well as osteological and material culture to change human-lover relations in Europe and North America over the last 500 years. The ideas expressed in this comment are his own. Read more opinion on CNN.
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We bury our late loved ones in the cemetery? A primary objective is to provide an opportunity to the remaining people to mourn and gain a sense of closure. The cemetery is a place for survival as much as it is a place for the dead.
But when it is not human about being dearly dear – but our pet?
The Spanish city of Barcelona recently announced that it would invest in the establishment of the country’s first public pet cemeteries. Set to open next year, it will offer both burial and cremation – each year with an estimated 7,000.
For me, as someone who has spent years spent in research on the development of pet cemeteries elsewhere in the world, the news has come as a shock. Barcelona is a densely populated city with limited private -owned land – a where 50% of families own a pet.
The house of 180,000 dogs which is a city, does not already have a public pet cemetery? Till now, the service was provided only by the private sector, according to the Barcelona councilor, Elloi Badia for climate emergency and ecological transition. He said that the initiative funded by the municipality was provoked by “continuous public demand”.
Eventually, the public pet cemetery has been around in Europe and America since the end of the 19th century. Britain’s first public pet cemetery appeared in 1881 at Hyde Park in London. New York’s Hartsdel Pet Cemetery was founded in 1896, followed by ornate Simatier’s Chens of Paris in 1899.
I was interested in the history of modern pet burial practices while examining the archaeological records of a centuries -old house in Toronto. I came in front of a (very) big dog buried in the rear garden, according to the historical record, was captured between 1840 and 1870.
The dog survived to an elderly age, but sadly that during its previous months, the degenerative joint disease and severe infection were suffering. His diseases progressed in a state that suggests that he received some level care in his last weeks. He was then buried in a personal conspiracy behind the family’s house.
This elderly dog inspired me to think about various ways, who interact with the body of their pets after death. Can this behavior be reflective about relationships organized with your animals in life? In this example, why take time out to bury a dog carefully at your own location, when others were certainly easy options?
It was, finally, an era when people often settled their dead pets in the river, or could sell their bodies for meat and skin.
Good hygiene is a clear reason to choose a burial – no one wants to disintegrate animal bodies in the road or their garden – but it will not immediately warrant a personal, dedicated burial and gravity.
The most straightforward option will be to deal with the deceased animal with domestic waste. But such treatments will obviously feel less formal and offer proper emotional closure for a significant relationship.
Like people’s burial, pet burial is an intimate cultural practice, which changes over time and reflects changing relationships that are with the funded beings of a society.
My study of historical Gravstones and Epitafes in Britain from the Victorian period to date shows this changing human relationship. In the 19th century, Gravstones were often dedicated to a “loving friend” or “dedicated partner”, suggesting that pets were mostly considered important friends.
In the early 20th century, the pets became members of the family – from the presence of family surnames on Gravstone, and loved the love written by “Mummy and Daddy”.
The changing attitude of society towards the role of animals in lifetime can also be found. A few decades later fast-forward, and Gravstones were more likely to refer to a reunion that were earlier. For example, in 1952, in the East London cemetery, the owners of the “Brave Little Cat” Denny wrote on their Epitaf “God Bless Till We Meet Again”.
I wonder what Epitafes in Barcelona’s new cemetery will tell about the modern Catalan relations with animals.
Over time, our ways of treating our animals dead reflect an even more intimate relationship in life. Once strictly refused by the law, the last decade saw several courts like the state of New York, which allows the co-operations of cremation animals and people, which will undoubtedly change the practices and memory practices for both humans and animals.
For me, the most notable equality between modern and historical pet cemeteries is the striking evidence for the heartbreak and taboo around the mourning for animals.
The relationship with someone with his pet can be as strong as their relationship with other humans. Nevertheless today, as 100 years ago, individuals continue to struggle to find a suitable outlet to express their pain, hiding heartache from fear of social results that may come up with public acknowledgment of the existence of such bondage.
RSPCA assures the public on its website that they should not feel ashamed of their grief. In the UK, charity bereaved humans such as Blue Cross and Rainbow Bridge Pet Los Grow Center provide consultation.
There are close ties between people and animals for millennia, but in Western European cultures, there were some acceptable ways to mourn that relationship. Since the society more accepts the importance of human-lover relationships for our collective good, we are not surprised to see that we follow the rituals that we use to mourn the loss of our nearest human relationships.
At the estimated cost of € 200 ($ 217) per service in the new Barcelona cemetery, it is important to accept that this opportunity to mourn will not be financially available to all in the city.
It will not be a place for all pets in the city. Pet owners can choose to place the remains of the funeral within their house or spread ashes at a meaningful place instead. Online forum and digital pet cemeter also offer other opportunities to celebrate the relationship and express grief.
Whether or not a pet chooses a cemetery, there are many acceptable ways to express your grief – and to remember their relationship with important animals in your life.
