Peninsula pet cemetery: RSPCA to bulldoze graves
The fur is flying over plans by the RSPCA to bulldoze a Peninsula pet cemetery, home to more than a 1000 beloved animals.
South East
Don't miss out on the headlines from South East . Followed categories will be added to My News.
Distraught animal lovers are barking mad over the RSPCA’s plan to demolish an animal cemetery holding more than a thousand dead — but not forgotten — pets.
The RSPCA has sent letters to pet owners whose beloved friends are resting at the Peninsula cemetery informing them it was to be bulldozed, though there were no “formal” plans for the site.
Toni Briscoe, 71, who buried two pets on the site in 1999, said she doesn’t understand why the RSPCA would bulldoze the cemetery on Robinsons Rd in Pearcedale with no concrete plans for its future use.
“They told me their plan was to bulldoze the cemetery,” Ms Briscoe said.
“Now they tell me they will exhume the pets but they can’t tell me what they will do once the site is cleared.”
Ms Briscoe said she had supported the RSPCA for almost 40 years but was now regretting her decision to trust the society to take care of her pets.
She said every year she donated a bag of dog food and even set aside $50,000 in her will for the company.
“I supported them, but no more,” she said
“I believe if they can’t respect the animals in their death, they can’t respect them in life.”
As part of the RSPCA pet insurance plan, pet owners have the option of a home burial or in cases where this isn’t possible, the society provide a burial in the pet cemetery where the animals can rest permanently.
Ms Briscoe said people who buried their pets from 2005 onwards were given a 20-year lease on the site, but when she buried her pets in 1999 she never received a lease.
Another pet owner has four years to go on her lease, but never received a letter notifying her of the planned demolition.
With more than 1000 animals buried on site, the process of consultation is ongoing and a meeting with pet owners will be held in January to address feedback.
RSPCA Victoria’s head of operation Tanya Drakopoulos said removing of the cemetery would “increase usable space” for community education programs on animal welfare.
“The removal of the cemetery will increase the usable space at RSPCA Peninsula, allowing us to grow our animal care and protection facilities to help achieve our vision of ending cruelty to all animals,” she said.
While the society doesn’t have any “formal plans” for the intended use of the space, it envisions it will be used to expand current facilities to “care for and promote wellbeing of more animals in the community”.
Ms Briscoe said she would continue to fight for not only her animals, but for others owners who no longer can.
“I know in the end I’m going to lose, because they’re a big business and I’m just one person,” she said.
“But I’ve got to keep fighting.”
