Pawprints and Jewelry: Many Styrians want a souvenir of their beloved pets when they have passed away. A visit to the animal crematorium in Gleisdorf.
Every day “Luna” was already waiting at the door, “Seppi” purred soothingly while he was watching TV on the couch. Dogs and cats are part of the family for many Styrians. Saying goodbye to beloved pets is difficult.
“Then it’s nice to be there for the owners,” says Günther Stadler. The Styrian works in one of the few animal crematoria in Austria in Gleisdorf. He and his colleagues are there around the clock: “We collect animals weighing up to 120 kilograms from all over Austria and cremate them here.”
Dead fellow human beings often keep them in the cold store longer: “Because some owners are only ready to say goodbye after a while.” This can also be done in the form of a goodbye.
Funeral directors make jewelry from ashes
And then? “Most people take the ashes home in urns,” Stadler says. The undertakers also process them into ceramic paw prints and fill them with silver jewelry or beads. In a chemical process, ash or hair is dissolved in a liquid and then pressed into a pearl.
Even as diamonds, the animals can stay with their owners: “In my year and a half, that was only the case two or three times.” The processed 300 grams of ash cost at least 2,500 euros: “But they are made somewhere else.”
Cremation increasingly popular
Since more and more animals are being cremated, “Aevum” will also open its own branch in Graz in December: “In order to be able to bring animals to Gleisdorf more quickly.”
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
