Canary-sized pet coffins

Is your backyard overrun with bulky, non-biodegradable pet coffins? CoffinPet, a French design concept, is a kid- and garden-friendly alternative.

Fri, Oct 16 2009 at 9:24 AM EST

This post may be a bit on the morbid side, but if there was ever a time to blog about biodegradable pet coffins from France, October is the month to do it.

Growing up, the veggie garden in my backyard doubled as a crowded pet cemetery for numerous gerbils and, eventually, a beloved goldfish named Georgie Girl that lived to the ripe old age of 8. The interment process was quick, easy, and unceremonious: the dead pet would be wrapped in a Kleenex shroud, a hole would be dug, and into the ground they went. Usually an arrangement of small rocks marked the spot.

For folks looking to give small pets — particularly birds, fish and rodents — a grand, design-y send-off, a new design concept from French designer Eric Denis called CoffinPet. Sporting cheeky, animal-shaped packaging, the “coffin” itself is PLA-based, entirely biodegradable, and much more space efficient than a shoebox. It’s been designed with both backyard gardeners and kids having trouble grasping the concept of pet burials in mind. And since it's October, I should point out that use of a CoffinPet should not be followed by a viewing of Pet Sematary ....