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More and more pets cremated

The number of pet cremations is on a steady rise in Flanders. Last year, more than 420 tons of deceased animals were cremated. That's no less than seven times as many as in 2010. The increased numbers are primarily due to the expansion of animal crematories here, but also to the fact that more and more people wish to have their dead pet incinerated.

Flanders has ten licensed animal crematories, four of them in West-Flanders province. At the moment, there are two candidate-crematories waiting for government approval. Many different animals are brought into these centres: dogs, cats, rodents, cage and aviary birds, rabbits, chickens, pigeons, and fish. Owners are even having their less 'classic' pets incinerated: snakes, turkeys, quails, ducks, geese, and pheasants.

The price of the cremation is determined by the animal's weight. Some crematories offer mass cremations, which cheapens the process. Most of the centres offer additional services like ceremonies, urn fields, memoriam websites, or whatever the owner wishes as a tribute to his late pet.

Another factor contributing to the success of pet cremations is the lack of animal cemeteries in Flanders, even though these were declared legal again more than five years ago by the Flemish government. "But so far, no one has asked permission to build an animal graveyard", says Flemish Public Waste Corporation OVAM's Jan Verheyen. Until 2010, a deceased animal was only allowed to be either buried in a private yard, cremated, or brought to a recycling park.

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