Too Odd for Words

The St. Petersburg Times, Sunday, 6 February 2011, page 15 A includes an article on pet cemeteries that include burials for humans. According to the story, most states have no statutes that bar having cremated human remains interned with those of a pet in a pet cemetery.

When I think of all the Find A Grave entries I’ve made, I don’t think that I’ve ever run into an internment that was in a pet cemetery. As a genealogist, I’ve often had to think outside of the box, but I have to admit that on my own I wouldn’t have gotten outside enough to look for a person in a pet cemetery.

I have to confess that I can look across the room right now and see the little box that has the cremated remains of one of my cats…my little Ziggie. She’s been in the same spot for almost two years as I ponder what I want to do with her.

Recently, I’ve settled on having her tucked in my coffin at my feet and buried with me in a people cemetery. However, it never occurred to me to have her added to my headstone as this article infers. Tucking a cremated pet into your coffin is legal in Florida courtesy of a state legislator who wanted to be buried with his beloved golden retriever. Being a power broker, he had a law passed. As a result, I can go into the beyond with Ziggie under foot where she always was.

I’ve got to say that it tickles me to no end that people in the future will be looking at my gravestone trying to make heads or tails of who Ziggie Tremé might be. I still have one more cat—Elvis—and if I can, I’ll add him too on the other side of my feet. So there will be a third being on my gravestone for people to ponder—Elvis Tremé.

I guess the upshot of all of this is that genealogists need to start tracking what is happening in pet cemeteries too. Who knew? The whole situation is just too odd for words.