By Ann Griffin, Director of Advocacy
The following ancient epitaph was found on a dog’s tomb created in classical antiquity: “I am in tears, while carrying you to your last resting place as much as I rejoiced when bringing you home in my own hands fifteen years ago.” For those who have loved and lost a pet, this may be a familiar sentiment. For those who haven’t, this epitaph offers insight into the depth of feeling people have for their pets and the strength of the human-animal bond.
The History of Pet Burial
Evidence of the human-animal bond can be seen when pet owners seek to honor the lives of their pets and remember them by interring their remains in a pet cemetery. Pet cemeteries are not a new phenomenon, and an ancient pet cemetery was discovered in Egypt and is believed to date to the first or second century CE. In the United States, as people started living in urban areas and including pets in their families, they needed a place to inter their pets’ remains and a way to express their feelings of grief and loss. The oldest pet cemetery in the U.S. was established in New York in 1896. Michigan’s oldest pet cemetery was established in 1936 as Happy Hunting Grounds Pet Cemetery in South Lyon. It is now the Michigan War Dogs Memorial.
The Urgent Need for Regulation
Despite the fact that pet cemeteries have operated in Michigan for 90 years, there is very little regulation of the industry. The need for regulation is exemplified by the harm caused when the operators of Heavenly Acres Pet Cemetery in Livingston County lost their lease for the pet cemetery property in 2018. They notified pet owners that they would have to remove their pets’ remains or risk losing them, and pet owners were given very little time to act. The abrupt closure of the pet cemetery impacted about 74,000 pets’ remains and resulted in years of litigation, which finally ended in a settlement.
Legislative Progress on SB 157
Bills that would regulate pet cemeteries have been introduced each session since the 2019-2020 session. It was not until the current session and the introduction of SB 157 that the legislation got some traction. SB 157 passed the Senate on June 10, 2025. It was referred to the House Regulatory Reform Committee, which heard the bill on June 25, 2026. Michigan Humane offered testimony in support of the bill.
Protecting Michigan Pet Owners
This bill would provide necessary protection for Michigan consumers. According to a Pew Research study, 62% of Americans own pets. Almost all pet owners (97%) consider pets to be part of their family, and more than half (51%) say their pets are as much a part of their family as human family members. The loss of a pet causes real grief, and creating a physical legacy for a pet in the form of interment in a pet cemetery can be an important step on the path to healing. SB 157 would regulate an industry that is currently unregulated, giving unscrupulous or negligent actors the opportunity to prey upon a grieving pet owner or carelessly disregard their interests. Michigan residents deserve peace of mind if they choose a pet cemetery as their pets’ final resting place knowing that their financial and emotional wellbeing is safeguarded.
Next Steps for the Bill
In order to be enacted into law, the bill will have to be passed by the committee and then by the House. Some additional safeguards were added to the bill before it was heard in the Regulatory Reform Committee, so if it passes the House, it will have to go back to the Senate for a concurrence vote. If the Senate concurs, the bill will go to the Governor’s desk for signature.
After the July 4th holiday, the Michigan legislature will break for the summer and legislators who are not term limited or otherwise not running for reelection will turn their attention to campaigning for the August primaries and November midterm elections. After the elections, the legislature will move into the “lame duck” portion of the 2025-2026 session. The legislators’ schedule for the remaining months of this session is uncertain, but we will continue to advocate for this and other important pending legislation. If you want to know more about which bills we are following and supporting, you can view our bill summary and tracking tool here.
We are going to keep working to improve animal welfare and create a more humane community while serving as a voice for the animals through advocacy. Together, we can continue to make a difference in animals’ lives. If you know someone who you think would be interested in this information, please forward this to them and encourage them to sign up for our Legislative Action Network.