Pets get send-off with a human touch
and
Pets are getting a high-class send-off at Animatrans, a funeral home that claims to be the first in Belgium to cater exclusively for pets.
Story
"Arthur was a special duck," said Myrian Waeles, who nuzzles her nose against the mallard's green head as she poses for photographs at her home in nearby Lennik, a town west of Brussels.
Arthur stares ahead with the same expression he has had for the last eight years, since he died and Waeles took him to Animatrans to be stuffed. The company also makes death masks, casting an impression of an animal's face in long-lasting resin.
"Having Arthur, stuffed next to me, comforts me."
"He was always waiting for me at the door when I came home, walking next to me in the living room," Waeles said of her duck.
Cathy Vertongen, a taxidermist, works on a dead dog at her workshop.
Vertongen works on a dead parrot.
Vertongen works on a dead dog.
Vertongen poses with a stuffed dog.
The stuffed body of Moukys, a barbary macaque, is seen at its owner Chantal Bauchez's home.
Monique Kroonen-Dupont poses with her stuffed Yorkshire, named Doudou, at her home.
The stuffed body Doudou, is seen at its owner's home.
The body of Charlie, a Jack Russell terrier, lies in a decorated basket.
The body of Bianca, a Canadian shepherd, lies in a decorated basket.
Paolo Presti reacts next to the body of his dog Bianca.
Graves of pets are seen at a cemetery for animals.
