Landlady wants to bury dead dog in the garden

koloko

We received a call from our landlady yesterday. Her dog has died, and she wants to bury it in our back garden.

It's a large dog (a big English sheepdog), and we have a relatively small garden. The grave would take up about a third of the total area of the garden.

I keep the garden in quite a good condition; over the years my wife and I have grown some flower beds and have a vegetable patch. I know nothing about the decompossision of large mammals, but I can't imagine it will do anything to improve the status quo.

She asked me if I was OK with it, and I mentioned I have reservations. She countered this with the fact that she wants to move house later this year, and therefore does not want to bury her dog at her current house. She wants the dogs remains to remain in a house she owns.

So she's going round this afternoon with her set of keys and the corpse whilst we're at work.

Three questions:

(1) Is this the standard way of disposing with large dead dogs?
(2) Can she legally do this?
(3) Morally, should I stop complaining and just let her get on with it, or am I within my rights to feel uncomfortable?

I'm in half a mind of going home at lunchtime to put a stop to it.

Sambucus_Nigra

No
No idea
No!

I would be with you putting a stop to it personally.

jbainbridge

No way!

... lost for words.

clyndu

Legally it depends on your local byelaws. If it is permissable, then the body has to be covered by 6feet of soil. Has she considered having the dog cremated, then she would be able take it with her to the new house. Most vets would give her details.

ReadingTim

Oh no, not again...

Owain_Moneysaver

Stopping her at lunchtime is going to leave a distressed landlady with a dead Fido, not the best state of affairs.

The sensible thing would be to get Fido cremated and sprinkle the ashes in the garden.

The worrying thing is if she doesn't bury Fido deep enough and you get lots of flies or a fox digs him up.

The landlady may come to the obvious conclusion that if she can't bury Fido with you renting the house she may pop him in the freezer and start eviction proceedings.

Better_Days

ReadingTim wrote: »

Oh no, not again...

Yes, that thread immediately sprung into my mind too....:eek:

paddy's_mum

I find it hard to understand how you manage to fit flower borders as well as a vegetable patch into a garden that is, you say, so tiny that the burial of an OE Sheepdog (not one of the larger breeds being mostly hair not frame) will take up one third of the garden.

However, I agree with others who suggest that pet cremation is the answer that should suit both the home owner and the tenant.

koloko

paddy's_mum wrote: »

I find it hard to understand how you manage to fit flower borders as well as a vegetable patch into a garden that is, you say, so tiny that the burial of an OE Sheepdog (not one of the larger breeds being mostly hair not frame) will take up one third of the garden.

However, I agree with others who suggest that pet cremation is the answer that should suit both the home owner and the tenant.

It's because the garden is thin and long. If I can dig out a photo I'll post it up.

Thanks for the advice, I'll try and call the landlady now. Next time I'll remember the search function!

DiscoCat54

I've been on the other end of this issue so I woud start by saying that whatever you say or do, please do it with sensitivity. I lived in a rental house that was in a row or three with a communal garden. One of my cats was killed by a car and I asked my neighbours if they would mind if I buried her in the garden (yes, I know I should have asked the LL but I wasn't really thinking) they all agreed however with a compromise on the position (area closer to compost heap rather than under the apple tree).

I came back home at lunchtime the following day and found a cardboard box in my kitchen with a note from my LL saying 'you should have asked'. Inside the box was my poor cat - following a tip off from one of my neighbours he had exhumed her and deposited her in my house.

Opening that box was the most horrific moment of my whole life....

chucknorris

DiscoCat54 wrote: »

I've been on the other end of this issue so I woud start by saying that whatever you say or do, please do it with sensitivity. I lived in a rental house that was in a row or three with a communal garden. One of my cats was killed by a car and I asked my neighbours if they would mind if I buried her in the garden (yes, I know I should have asked the LL but I wasn't really thinking) they all agreed however with a compromise on the position (area closer to compost heap rather than under the apple tree).

I came back home at lunchtime the following day and found a cardboard box in my kitchen with a note from my LL saying 'you should have asked'. Inside the box was my poor cat - following a tip off from one of my neighbours he had exhumed her and deposited her in my house.

Opening that box was the most horrific moment of my whole life....

My sympathies, one day your LL will do something like this to the wrong person. They could have handled that situation with much more tact than they did.