REST IN

REST IN
PEACE
A look at pet cemeteries
across America.
a practice allowed since the remains have been cremated.
Martin says that some famous people have buried their pets
at Hartsdale Pet Cemetery, including Mariah Carey, drummer
Gene Krupa, chef Rocco DiSpirito,
DtDIGATJiJ)
TO THE MfMIJIli' (if
However, Hartsdale might be most famous for its memorial
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dedicated to the canines that have served in war. The memorial was established
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f4l"HP l FqlEt D.fo,o mE VAUA~T
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in 1923 when there was a public outcry to
recognize the efforts and valor of the canine military.
THE
WORLD WAR
114 -
THE OUTLAW OF HYDE PARK
1918
While most U.S. presidents
Hartsdale's famous mem01'ial to canines who
served in wars. Hartsdale Pet Cemetery is home to
70,000+ four-legged pets-and even some humans.
or some people,
F
cemetery,
dancer Irene Castle and
singer Kate Smith.
there's no place scarier than a
with all of those headstones
and the
companions
are known to have had dogs as
while in the White
House, possibly none was
more famous than Murray the Outlaw
of Fala Hill, better
known as "Fala," who was the faithful companion
Franklin D. Roosevelt.
of President
"The president is buried in the rose garden," says Franceska
eerie quiet. Tales of souls who can't rest in peace
Urbin, supervisory park ranger for The Home of Franklin Del-
don't help, either. For those who work at cemeter-
ano Roosevelt National Historic Site in Hyde Park, NY. "Mrs.
ies, or are responsible for overseeing them, it's just
Roosevelt decided when Fala died that he should be buried
next to the president."
all in a day's work.
In this issue-appropriately,
for the Halloween
season-
Fala was so popular with the public that he had his own
FIDO Friendly takes a look at five of the nation's pet cem-
secretary assigned to respond to his mail. When
eteries. We couldn't find any ghost tales but all of them have
Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945, Urbin says Fala attended
unique
stories-some
that make them famous, some that
the funeral and then went to live at their retreat at Val-Kill
with Mrs. Roosevelt.
make them infamous.
President
"When
the president
was alive, Fala
would sit in the doorway of the living
THE SECOND,OLDEST
KNOWN
PET CEMETERY IN THE WORLD
Located just 30 minutes north of New York City and founded
in 1896, Hartsdale Pet Cemetery was the first formally established pet cemetery in the United States and the second- oldest known in the world, according
to Ed Martin, vice presi-
dent of the cemetery in Hartsdale,
NY. "A vet in New York
City, Dr. Samuel Johnson,
allowed some of his clients who
didn't have yards in the city to put their pets at his country
home," says Martin. "The New Times ran a story about it, and
things became formalized in 1914."
Hartsdale
Pet Cemetery
is the final resting place to more
than 70,000 beloved four-legged family members, 99 percent
of them dogs and cats. There are birds, ferrets, turtles and even
a lion cub buried on the nearly five 'acres of the cemetery. The
ashes of 700 people are also buried with their pets at Hartsdale,
Floe
FRIENDLY
f family and friends are unable to help, who will
care for your beloved pets if you die or cannot care
I
for them? A local shelter may not be a good option,
because in many shelters, a pet not immediately
adopted runs the risk of being euthanized. North
Shore Animal League America recognizes that pet
owners need other options, and has created the Safe
Haven Surviving Pet Care Program, which is available
to pet owners across the country.
To learn more about North Shore's Surviving Pet
Care Program please visit www.onimolleague.org/
safehaven.
liilelM'W'it'
room, which gave him a
line of sight to both the front and back
doors. He never wanted the president
leave without
the president
him," says Urbin.
to
"After
died, Fala would still sit in
that spot waiting for the president
turn. The sounds of motorcycles
to reand si-
rens always made him perk up."
Ironically, Fala died in his sleep at the age
of 12 on April 12, 1952, exactly seven years
after the president. Fala is the only presidential dog to be memorialized in statue in
Washington, o.c. There is also a statue in
the rose garden near his grave in New York.
THE HORROR
STORIES OF ASPIN
HILL AND THISTLEROSE
While all pet cemeteries hold the stories of the
pet-human bond, not all of their endings are
peaceful.
Aspin
Hill Memorial
Park
in Silver
Spring, MD, is the final resting place for
many pets, including
those of
J.
Edgar
Hoover, the longtime FBI director; Rags,
the mascot of a World War I Army unit;
and the dog known as "Petey" in the Little Rascals/Our
Gang series of the 1930s.
It is said that the remains of more than
40 humans
are also buried
along with
their canine and feline companions at
the cemetery where 40,000 pers rest. The
nation's second-oldest
trouble,
however.
for the cemetery
The
pet cemetery
telephone
is disconnected
is in
listed
and a
2005 Washington Post article (the latest we
could find) described the cemetery's legal
battles of guardianship rhat transferred to
a woman who has buried her pets there
since the 1960s, to the People for the Erhical Treatment
Chesapeake
of Animals (PETA) to rhe
Wildlife Sanctuary. Even the
local chamber
and convention
and visi-
tor's bureau didn't know who the owners/
caretakers are supposed to be at this point.
CD
When choosing a pet cemetery,
it is always wise to inquire what
protection there is on the land to
ensure it will indeed be the final
home for your beloved pet.
To read about more pet cemeteries, logon to:
1.1' uno .f1dofriendl). cOln/featLlrcs/ cemeteries.