What to do if a pet dies

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

You can't just bury a pet.

Why animals are forbidden to bury

For the owners, the deceased Sharik or Murka is practically family members, but for the state it is biological waste. Moreover, it makes no difference which animal died and what size: both the hamster and the horse are equal before the law.

A pet's body is a potential source of danger, especially if it dies from an illness. So a romantic funeral under a rose bush or in a forest belt has a downside. Disease-causing bacteria and toxic substances that are produced during the decomposition of a corpse can enter groundwater and lead to infection of people and other animals. It is possible that the body will become food for a stray or wild animal, which will spread the infection further.

Therefore, it is strictly prohibited:

• Bury the corpse of an animal in the ground. But there are exceptions: this can be done in case of mass death due to a natural disaster, as well as when the body cannot be moved to a crematorium or biothermal pit, but only with the permission of the chief veterinary inspector of the region.
• Dispose of the body in a garbage container or landfill.
• Throw the remains into bodies of water.

Incorrect disposal of biological waste is punished, but, of course, only if a violation of the law is recorded. For individuals, the fine is 4–5 thousand rubles.

Pet cemeteries with fences and signs are often illegal. When found, they are usually eliminated, and by methods far from sentimentality: the corpses are burned, and the ritual paraphernalia is sent to the landfill. There is another option: urns with animal ashes are buried in the cemetery. In this case, everything is legal, but only if the site is drawn up by an organization for these purposes.

What to do with the body of an animal if it cannot be buried

By law, animal corpses are cremated or disinfected in biothermal pits (these are special isolated structures in which bodies decompose faster and without the danger of bringing bacteria into groundwater). The second method is usually used for farm animals.

Pets are cremated in special ovens.

There are special measures for the place where the animal died. If the body was on the ground, it must be disinfected. According to the law, for this you need to sprinkle the area with dry bleach at the rate of 5 kilograms per square meter and dig it to a depth of 25 centimeters.

How to bury an animal legally

1. Call your veterinarian

The veterinarian must be notified of the death of the animal within 24 hours. The specialist will examine the body and find out why the pet died.

Veterinarian services will also be needed if the animal has a miscarriage or has a dead offspring. The incident may be related to infections, so a doctor's visit will help save the pet and legally dispose of the fetus or cubs.

2. Deliver the body to the crematorium

You can immediately call a veterinarian from a clinic that provides cremation services. In this case, the specialist himself will deliver the pet's body where needed.

If the veterinarian was from one service, and you plan to cremate the corpse at another, you may need a certificate according to form No. 4. It indicates the presence or absence of diseases in the animal.

The addresses and phone numbers of crematoria will have to be searched on the Internet: there is no common database for such services.

The cost of cremation depends on the weight of the animal: the larger it is, the more expensive the procedure will be. Usually, several bodies are burned in the ovens at the same time; you will have to pay extra for the individual version of the service. On request and for additional money, you can get a photo or video report - it will be useful to suspicious owners who doubt that it is the ashes and their pet in the urn.

When mass burned, the ashes can also be given out, but the container will contain the remains of several animals.

3. Decide what to do with the ashes

There is no biological hazard in this case, since the bacteria are destroyed by the high temperature. The urn can, for example:

• bury pets in a special cemetery, if there is one in the city;
• rent a cell in a special columbarium;
• store at home;
• dispel in a place where the pet loved to frolic.