FAITHFUL UNTO DEATH

The remarkable stories of beloved pets from the famous and unusual to the everyday memorialized at burial sites around the world accompanied by a rich selection of archival photos and the author s evocative images of their final resting places When a little dog named Cherry died in 1881 his owners arranged for a grave in a nearby gatekeeper s garden in London At this time the idea that a pet even one that had lived as a family member might be given a dignified burial was considered comical But when other pet owners likewise determined to memorialize their companion animals followed suit the world s first urban pet cemetery was born More soon followed across Europe the United States and then the rest of the world resulting in a revolution in the way we consider animals Faithful unto Death tells the stories of people who gave their hearts to a disparate variety of species yet were all united in one common belief that the reward at death for a faithful animal companion should reflect the love it offered during life Losing a pet has always been a unique kind of pain No set rituals exist to help provide closure when pets die there are no readily shared passages from spiritual texts no community of compassion to surround the mourner and help allevia