Harwich Considers Developing a Pet Cemetery

KA_town center brooks park_Harwich_Winter_121515HARWICH – Town meeting voters in Harwich will be asked to transfer a piece of land to the cemetery commission to develop a burial ground for pets.

The parcel which is 2.25 acres is located on Queen Anne Road across from the Division of Highways and Maintenance office.

“It is a parcel that was transferred to the town for municipal use so we thought this was a great fit for us,” said Robbin Kelley, the cemetery administrator in Harwich.

The idea of the creation of a pet cemetery in Harwich occurred after pet owners in the state filed a bill to allow pets to be buried in cemeteries in their owner’s burial plots.

Kelley said the town’s regulations prohibit non-human remains to be buried in cemeteries.

The proposed pet cemetery in Harwich would be modeled after the Hills Memorial Gardens in Florida.

“It is a park like cemetery. It has a gazebo in the center. All flat memorials. It has walking paths, scattering gardens and is pet friendly,” Kelley said. “So not only will pets be able to be interred there but you’ll be able to walk your pets there as well.”

Future plans also call for the installation of a pet crematory.

Kelley said the American Pet Products Association estimates that pet owners will spend $60 billion dollars in 2016 in services alone.

“Most people love their pets more than they love their family members,” she said. “And they are looking for a place to memorialize their pets and we are hoping to create such a place here in Harwich.”

Town meeting in Harwich is May 2.

By BRIAN MECHANT, CapeCod.com NewsCenter

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