A local woman with five deceased pets arrived at Toledo Memorial Park desperately seeking help. Two of the pets belonged to her, while three belonged to her sister.
“What do I do with all of these? Help me,” she said.
Pet owners feel responsible for their animals even after the pets pass, because of the love they shared, and that includes finding a dignified final resting place.
That’s what Toledo Memorial Park will provide with Reflections Garden, a four-acre pet cemetery that opened in Sylvania this summer.
Laura Kronmann, who owns Image Focus, the cemetery’s ad agency, said the woman who was desperate for help was relieved when Reflections Garden offered respite for her five pets.
“By finding this place, she knows and is comfortable and confident that the pets are here and they’re at their final resting place,” Kronmann said. “She doesn’t have to worry about her pets, her sister’s pets, and if she passes, what she’s going to do with them. She knows where they’re at and I think that gives people peace of mind.”
Reflections Garden has an accommodating variety of grave sizes for their pets. A bronze or black granite grave marker can be inscribed with the pet’s name, birth and death dates, and picture.
Jeff Clegg, president and CEO of Toledo Memorial Park and Reflections Garden Pet Cemetery, said the idea of the pet cemetery had been talked about for two years.
“When we decided we were going to do it, we found some property that we could split off of the cemetery,” he said. “Then we had a few hurdles we had to cross with zoning and title work.”
According to Clegg, before making the project a priority, the closest pet cemetery to Toledo was in Ypsilanti, MI. He also noted that approximately 450 pets are cremated every month in the Toledo area by veterinarians.
“When you hear that kind of number—450 pets on average cremated from the vets a month—and there really isn’t another pet cemetery within a 50-mile radius, there is definitely a market that is underserved,” Kronmann said.
Another driving factor to build the pet cemetery was the fact that a number of people use the cemetery as a place to walk and be with their pets.
“There are a lot of people who walk their dogs here because it is a beautiful, safe place to get exercise,” Clegg said. “We encourage that here and have taken it to the next step. Now they can bring their new pets with them, when they visit the ones that have passed.”
The cemetery is in the process of developing a program to partner with local vets.
“We want to let them know that that’s not the end, just because the cremation process is over. There is still one more step that needs to be taken, and that’s a dignified final resting place,” Clegg said.
Information on Reflection Gardens Pet Cemetery, 6382 Monroe St., Sylvania, is available online at toledomemorialpark.com/pet-cemetery or by calling 419-882-7151.
