A special bond exists between pet and owner. Animals of all shapes and sizes bring joy and comfort to millions. In English homes they are treated as part of the family.

To some, this relationship is particularly intense. Their pets are like their children. It is impossible to quantify the emotional investment in their beloved dog or cat.

So when their pet dies, it is a genuine bereavement. That is when a pet cemetery becomes important. It gives people the chance to bury their animal with suitable ceremony, and ensures a lasting resting place to which they can return, pay their respects and rekindle happy memories.

But in Huby, that resting place has become less permanent than was initially imagined. The Millgate Pet Cemetery set up by a farmer in 1992 has been sold, and the new owners wish to relocate the headstones.

Maureen Jackson, whose dogs Toby and Prince are buried there, is distraught. Some might scoff and call her reaction as over-the-top, but they would be wrong. We only need to see Maureen's description of her pets as "my babies" to understand the attachment she had for them.

To her, moving Toby and Prince's headstones is as outrageous as shifting those marking the resting place of human relatives. Unfortunately for Maureen, this pet cemetery is on private, not hallowed, ground and therefore not bound by any special laws.

The new owners appear to be approaching this delicate issue with due sensitivity. As the land belongs to them, they have the legal right to do with it what they wish. But Ian and Alexandra Thornton are animal lovers and empathise with the families involved.

They wish to move the headstones to a nearby site. A letter has been sent to all the owners explaining the situation and assuring them that no changes will happen for three years.

The Thorntons say they have spent thousands of pounds redeveloping the new cemetery, including constructing a car park to offer easy access to it. They will move the remains with the headstones if the owners wish.

When Maureen's dogs were laid to rest she naturally thought they would be in the same place forever. But it is not the fault of the new owners that they have had to shatter this conception.

Fortunately, there is enough time to work out an amicable settlement. We earnestly hope that both sides can work towards an agreement in the next three years.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.