Bereaved pet owners - victims of fraud

A serious post today - so if you are looking for laughs maybe skip off to the next blog on your list.

This week the Lady Of The House met some lovely, lovely pet owners - but in very, very sad circumstances.

They were at Derby Crown Court for the trial of a woman who ran a pet crematorium business - until a number of pets she was supposed to have cremated were found dumped in a Derbyshire field back in August 2009.

This woman - whose business was called Peak Pet Cremations (it's closed now) - had a contract with a local veterinary group to handle pet cremations for them.

This week when she appeared in court she changed her previous 'not guilty' plea to 'guilty' to six charges of fraud relating to falsely claiming that she had cremated three dogs, two cats and a guinea pig. She will be sentenced next month.

The Lady Of The House has been covering the news story for the last few days on her Lost & Fond website and if you want to find out more, you can read those stories here

These pet owners have been so brave for nearly 18 months now since the bodies were first found. At one point it looked as if the criminal case might be dropped - but they got their MP involved and fought on.

They still can't understand why this woman did what she did - and they hope there might be some answers when she is sentenced by the Judge and more information comes out.

In the UK we have a wonderful organisation called the Association Of Private Pet Cemeteries and Crematoria (APPCC) which has a code of conduct its members agree to abide by regarding how pet cremations and burials are handled. They have provided a lot of support for the families in this sad case. So has a lovely lady called Dawn Murray who runs her own pet undertaker's service in Scotland and is a trained pet bereavement counsellor.

Kevin Spurgeon, director of the APPCC, said: "This case damages the reputation of the many genuine pet crematoria that help owners through the loss of their pet. Our members adhere to a strict code of practice ensuring that sites are licensed and individual cremations are carried out properly and it is sickening to think that someone has abused the trust of these grieving pet owners at such a vulnerable time."

The families will, of course, never forget the pets they lost. I just hope that they can find peace and some closure after next month's sentencing.

I promise to have a little more of an upbeat post for you tomorrow to round off the week.

Now go and give your pets an extra big hug.