Kitty cremation now available
IPSWICH pet owners who love their pooches, cats, horses, lizards and rodents can now access a special cremation service for their animals.
Pets Rest in Peace, based in Toowoomba, have appointed an Ipswich manager to deal with a high demand for their unusual service in the region.
Company owner Beric Lees said Ipswich pet owners increasingly wanted to cremate their pets.
"We get a lot of pets from Ipswich; everything from mice to horses," Mr Lees said.
"Normally, our clients are people who have grown up with a much-loved pet and want to be able to remember them in this way."
"We offer the exact same service as a human crematorium; we treat the pets with special care and have a specially-made crematorium."
Mr Lees said he and Ipswich manager Vivien Konwerski-Garman shared the same background of working in the human funeral industry.
"I've worked in this area for people for 20 years, and I came up with the idea to start Pets Rest in Peace five years ago," Mr Lees said.
"People are very attached to their pets; they're a member of the family and sometimes people have pets instead of children."
"Pet owners often don't realise how important their pets are; they'll come home everyday and their pet will be happy to see them and you start to take that for granted."
Mr Lees said his business had recently been chosen to cremate Dreamworld's white Bengal tiger Mohan.
"Being selected to cremate Mohan was an honour and I think it showed we offer an outstanding service."
He said cremation prices started at $120 for tiny pets.
"We charge about $285 as a base price for a small animal like a dog," he said.
Prices range up to $1295 for large horses.
