According to a survey by Nationwide, 12 per cent of Brits admit that they love their pet more than their partner and nearly a quarter of owners say they love their pet more than their best friend. With pets considered part of the family, it is only natural that owners are looking beyond the traditional options when their beloved pets die.

Presently, there are over 50 crematoriums offering services for pets in the UK. It is estimated that the pet funeral industry as a whole is worth over £100 million a year, something which is expected to increase as public awareness grows.

The owners of such assets come from a wide spectrum,  from private companies to kennel owners who have diversified into pet crematoriums. Developing new sites can be controversial with planning permission often being difficult to obtain due to the sensitive nature of the proposed use. It is also wise to look ahead and consider whether the cemetery use is likely to compromise any future change of use. While the land itself isn’t consecrated, any future development of the land will remain ethically sensitive and emotive.

According to the Association of Private Pet Cemeteries and Crematoria, approximately 20 per cent of pets are currently buried in the garden and around 7 per cent are privately cremated. Most of the remainder are cremated via the veterinary practice.

The benefit of cremation over burial in the garden, of course, is that there is less emotional implication if the owners move house and where the cremation is private, ashes can be scattered somewhere sentimentally associated. There is often a private 'chapel of rest' as part of the property which gives grieving owners a place to go if needed. Cremation also resolves some of the more practical complications of burial such as the depth of graves in relation to the water table and ensuring that any land used is held freehold.

There is space for expansion in the sector as there is no dominating brand or operator. With an increase expected in both demand for facilities and a rise in wider awareness of the services available at pet crematoriums, we expect to see significant growth in this sector in the near future.

Further information

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