When the veterinarian told Pat Wray her 13-year-old dog P.J. might have to be put down, her reaction was quick.

“I don’t think so,” she said.

But the little dog had sustained a neck injury and wasn’t getting better.  So, Wray, her brother Tom, and friend, Denise Gonzalez, started looking at area pet cemeteries.

Cemeteries in Milan, Novi, and Rochester were full.  Another pet cemetery in Taylor didn’t have the peaceful atmosphere they wanted.  So, they decided to start their own pet cemetery for P.J.

“She’s been real special to me, cheered me up when I was down,” said Pat Wray, of Ypsilanti.  P.J.’s neck injury healed with the help of a chiropractor, but she is aging.  Pat plans to bury her at the cemetery they are planning when the time comes.

“It might sound a little crazy, but I figure it’s the least we can do for her.”

Whispering Pines Pet Cemetery will open next month on a wooded 8-acre plot off Holmes Road, not far from St. John’s Cemetery in Ypsilanti Township.  Tom Wray, owner of the Grounds Keeper, landscaping company plans to use his expertise to form a series of gardens around cemetery plots.  He is raising 500 pine trees to plant throughout the area.

Now, the cemetery’s tallest pine tree shades a sign at the entrance.  A driveway winds left to the azalea garden, which will include 625 plots organized in rows marked with long concrete slabs.  Each plot will have engraved plaque set into the concrete.  On the right, a grotto circled with tall bushes will display a statue of St. Francis of Assisi and several plots.

“It’s going to be a place where people can go and sit and think about their puppy,” said Pat Wray.  “We wanted it to be a place P.J. would be happy in.”

Construction will continue through next spring, Gonzalez said.  Workers are digging a well and installing water and other utilities.  A watering system will feed the two gardens as well as 13 future planned gardens.  They hope to build an office there this year, Gonzalez aid.  They will add a chapel next year and a crematorium later.

The cemetery will be run much like its human counterparts.  Pet owners will be able to purchase caskets designed especially for pets.  Silk floral arrangements, white crosses with painted paw prints, and crosses with picture frames will be available from Ypsilanti Flowers and Greenhouse.  Part of the fee will be set aside in a perpetual maintenance fund.  The total cost will be about $400 for a cat or small dog.

Families also will be able to attend the burials.  It will help with the grieving process for the pets many consider a family member, Gonzalez said.  Many pet owners visit their pets’ graves more often than the graves of their deceased relatives, she said.

“The older people where the pets have become their life – they’re very happy to know that (their pets) are in a safe place,” she said.

The burial ceremony is rather simple.  Some families invite a minister while others say a few words alone, Gonzalez said.  Then, the casket is sealed and buried.

“It’s just a dignified goodbye,” she said.  “(People) need closure.  That’s why pet cemeteries have been in existence for over 2000 years."

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