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Pet Cemetery Shut Down Due to Horrible Violations

Pet Cemetery, the reality

By Judi McLeod

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Last March when thousands of pets sickened and died in the horrific poison pet food scandal, scores of people turned to www.itchmo.com.

Worried pet owners, desperate for information that might help keep their pets alive, turned to Itchmo for any scrap of information.

Keeping up with all the twists and turns on the poisoned pet food story was a full-time job.

Even now, the mystery has never been resolved and the pet food manufacturer supplier most responsible for the tragedy had the gall to stage a seminar.

If there is any silver lining in the poisoned pet food scandal it's that the consumer began to see pet food manufacturers in a new light.

Pets It was like somebody came along and to open up a window in a stifling room. As the days became weeks and then months, consumers came to understand how their authorities had let them down.

With hundreds of pet foods and treats on recall, pet owners started feeding their pets the only food they could trust--that prepared in their own kitchens, a practice still in place some five months later.

Greedy pet food manufacturers forget something the public never will: The canary in the coal mine, cats and dogs falling to illness and death led the way to the incredible truth that Chinese exports endanger the human food chain. That North America was accepting tainted toothpaste, lead-laden toys that put our children at risk and even clothes manufactured and sent from China with formaldehyde, a proven cancer-causing agent started a new generation of consumers.

Like an oasis in a desert, Itchmo was there for pet owners during the poisoned pet food scandal. For pet owners, Itchmo, "all about News for Cats and Dogs", was always there. The site provides "essential news, humor, and product reviews for cats, dogs and pet owners" and delivers it with panache.

So it was no surprise to Itchmo fans to see a story posted on August 24, entitled Canadian Pet Cemetery Shut Down Due to Horrible Violations.

The startling story, written by Emily Huh started off with this rider: Warning: This story may disturb some readers.

The story centers on Misty Gardens Pet Cemetery and Domestic Animal Cremation in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

The cemetery was forced under cleansing sunshine when two pet owners happened to stumble upon some alarming information.

"After hearing that the Misty Gardens Pet Cemetery was ordered to clean up dog carcasses, Adele Yan, a dog owner, had to investigate the situation." ( www.itchmo.com, August 24, 2007. "Her family's yellow Labrador, Otis, had died six months ago and he was supposed to have been buried at the cemetery during the springtime. But she was still waiting from the cemetery in regards to when he would be buried."

You don't have to be a pet owner to imagine the heartache suffered by Yan when she got to discover the truth--first person.

Yan went to the pet cemetery and found her dog's remains--in a torn garbage bag--on the cemetery property. The bag was on a table inside the crematorium building, which was owned by Domestic Animal Cremations.

Yan found several freezers filled with garbage bags of animal carcasses.

Sadly, she recognized Otis' body by his brown nose and his paw, which had blue ink, applied to it to take a keepsake print.

Sandra McLeod, another pet owner accompanied Yan to the pet cemetery because she wanted to find out what had happened to her dog. McLeod became suspicious after she had her dog cremated and received her dog's ashes. A haunting hunch filled her with doubt about the ashes being her pet dog's, so she took the remains to the University of Manitoba and was told that the ashes were most likely from a cat and not her dog.

Gail Harrison, the woman who has operated Domestic Animal Cremation for the past 22 years, initially said these reports were based on ugly rumours. The business had been shut down two weeks prior by the Public Health Department, who had discovered bags of rotting animals' bodies at Harrison's home. Only time will tell whether criminal charges will be brought against Harrison.

According to the Manitoba Veterinary Medical Association, pet crematoriums are private businesses that are not regulated by provincial licensing standards.

Pet owners in the area are now pushing for stricter regulations on pet crematoriums.

Meanwhile, one of the saddest parts of this story is the countless pet owners who sent their pets to Misty gardens left to wonder if the ashes they have are really those of their pets--or even where their pet's ashes really are.

Pet detectives, who make a difference, call Itchmo home.

That's because Itchmo, as surely as cats purr, is the best pet site on the Worldwide Internet.

Canada Free Press founding editor Most recent by Judi McLeod is an award-winning journalist with 30 years experience in the print media. Her work has appeared on Newsmax.com, Drudge Report, Foxnews.com, Glenn Beck. Judi can be reached at: judi@canadafreepress.com


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