In Belgium, the Reuters photographer Yves Herman recently visited Animatrans, a funeral home that claims to be the first in Belgium designed exclusively for pets. Animatrans handles a number of arrangements for pets that have passed on, from funerals and burial, to death masks and taxidermy—for customers who seek a more tangible reminder of their beloved companions.
A Full-Service Funeral Home for Pets
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Read morePatrick Pendville, the owner of Animatrans, poses with a stuffed dog at a taxidermist's workshop in Aalst, Belgium, on April 29, 2016. #
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Read morePaolo Presti reacts next to the body of his dog Bianca, a Canadian shepherd, at the Samsara Eternity crematory for animals in Soignies, Belgium, on April 12, 2016. #
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Read moreThe graves of pets in a cemetery for animals in Aywaille, Belgium, on April 8, 2016. #
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Read morePatrick Pendville, the founder of Animatrans, adjusts coffins made for animals at his shop in Brussels, on April 15, 2016. #
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Read moreCathy Vertongen, a taxidermist, works on a dead parrot at her workshop in Aalst, Belgium, on April 29, 2016. #
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Read moreCathy Vertongen works on a dead dog at her workshop in Aalst, Belgium, on April 29, 2016. #
Yves Herman / Reuters -
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Read moreCathy Vertongen works on a dead dog at her workshop in Aalst, on April 29, 2016. #
Yves Herman / Reuters -
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Read moreChantal Bauchez poses with her stuffed Barbary macaque, named Moukys, at her home in Rebecq, Belgium, on April 29, 2016. #
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Read moreThe grave of a dog named Belle, in a cemetery for animals in Aywaille, Belgium, on April 8, 2016. #
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Read moreThe stuffed body of a Yorkshire, named Doudou, at its owner Monique Kroonen-Dupont's home in Genval, Belgium, on April 29, 2016. #
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Read moreThe body of Chico, a Chihuahua, lies in a decorated basket at the Samsara Eternity crematory for animals in Soignies, Belgium, on April 12, 2016. #
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Read moreMyriam Waeles poses with her stuffed duck, a mallard named Arthur, at her home in Lennik, Belgium, on April 29, 2016. “Arthur was a special duck ... He was always waiting for me at the door when I came home, walking next to me in the living room,” Waeles said. “Having Arthur, stuffed next to me, comforts me.” #
Yves Herman / Reuters -
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Read moreThe taxidermist Cathy Vertongen works on a dead dog at her workshop in Aalst on April 29, 2016. #
Yves Herman / Reuters -
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Read morePatrick Pendville, the founder of Animatrans, shows a resin mask depicting the face of a dead dog at the Samsara Eternity crematory for animals in Soignies, Belgium, on April 15, 2016. #
Yves Herman / Reuters -
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Read moreThe taxidermist Cathy Vertongen poses with a stuffed dog at her workshop in Aalst on April 29, 2016. #
Yves Herman / Reuters
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