And here the pets rest...

IN SLUMBER

MANSE
27 January 2000 - 24 August 2009
A Beloved Member of Our Family
Beautiful. Loving. Vivacious. Brave. Bringer of Joy.
Ever striving to be true to her qualities, despite advanced age and illness.
Manse, you will never be forgotten. You cannot be.
You will live on in our minds for as long as we live.
And in the minds of those who read these words.
Venky, Prithvi, Jayanthi, Grandma, Xerxes,
Monaco and Merlin.

There is quiet green space set aside at the People For Animals (PFA) shelter at Kengeri,where beloved pets are laid to rest with love and dignity. The only one-of-its-kind in South India, the pet cemetery is spread over one acre and is largely managed and run by PFA member Ranjan Chacko. An animal lover in every sense of the word, Ranjan feels passionately about the injured wildlife they nurse back to health and rehabilitate at the 6-acre PFA shelter.

“The pet cemetery began as concept six years ago when a bereaved pet owner wrote to a newspaper bemoaning the fact that Fluffy, her beloved dog could not be buried anywhere in the City. This triggered the realisation that in a metropolis like Bangalore, which is rapidly filling up with apartment blocks, there is no space to bury a pet. We decided to keep a corner of our shelter for this purpose and as word spread, many owners have been able to lay their pets to rest after a proper memorial. It gives them a great deal of comfort and some degree of closure,” he says.

“Animal companions weave themselves into the fabric of our daily lives and the touching epitaphs on many of the headstones are a reminder of that deep emotional bond that they have shared with their owners. Since the normal life span of pets is so much shorter than a human beings, it is predictable that as a pet owner, one will inevitably experience the pain of losing a pet, which is really no different from that of losing a cherished friend or special member of the family.” he adds. There are over 200 pets buried here at PFA and Ranjan is familiar with all the names and epitaphs.

“Rachel, an expat living here lost her beloved ‘Gigi’ a stray, she adopted in Spain, relocated to Finland with and finally laid to rest in Bangalore at our cemetery. Gigi has come a long way from her homeland to her final resting place here with us,” he smiles.
“When we lost our darling Manse, we were devastated. Luckily our friend Xerxes had heard of PFA’s cemetery and we were able to give her a fitting burial with a proper tombstone and epitaph. A symbol of all she meant to us. A proper farewell to a pet does give you some closure in the face of tragedy and pain,” says Jayanthi who is yet to come to terms with the recent loss of her beautiful Saint Bernard, Manse.

“We arrange for an animal hearse to transport the body as some owners find the thought of driving down with the corpse too traumatising,” says Ranjan. “We have staff trained to handle the burial in keeping with environmental norms. People in Bangalore need to know that it is both normal and healthy to use a funeral or memorial service to express your sorrow, proclaim your love and bid a final farewell to a cherished friend who has given you so much joy, comfort and unconditional love,” he adds. The cemetery is located on 67, Uttarhalli Road, Kengeri.