The oldest pet cemetery in Italy

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The oldest pet cemetery in Italy, with nearly a

of all kinds, from dogs and cats to pigeons,

, celebrates a hundred years since its first and surprising burial:

The origin of

, as this peculiar place located on the outskirts of Rome is known, dates back to 1922 and has a "particular history": Antonio Molon, who was the dictator's veterinarian, gave his children a chicken that She became the children's playmate until she died shortly after.

"Mussolini asked my father, since he had land, to bury it so that the children could go leave flowers and remember the days they spent together," explains his son and current owner, Luigi Molon, in an interview with Efe. in his office, decorated with photos of his father with the "Duce's" dogs.

The burial took place the

and from there the idea of ​​installing a cemetery for all kinds of species in the rear garden of the Molon house was born.

"Then came

-the last royal house in Italy-, of actors such as the French Brigitte Bardot, of prime ministers, magistrates and other celebrities," says Molon, who is reluctant to reveal the names of his most important clients. .

A hundred years have passed since then and this unusual cemetery, whose gates are flanked by a statue of two dogs and a sign that reads "Infirmary and burial", is now home to nearly a thousand pets.

Among the colorful tombs of all colors and sizes that are piled up in the garden one can find from the simplest tombs to true

and colored garlands, leaving evidence of the loving owners along the decades.

"What the tombstones do is nothing more than continue the routine that their owners had of combing the pets, washing them, playing with them... it is a thread that is not interrupted", explains Luigi Molon.

This routine is kept alive with

to this corner of Rome to continue showing their pets a love, "that never dies", adds this retired veterinarian, who during the interview greets three women who enter to visit their loved ones.

Owners who know the century-old cemetery constantly call him to see if there is any space available to bury their pets.

"They call me at all hours and ask me if there is room. Normally we have, and the pet is buried with a five-year contract," he explains.

Although the 78-year-old Italian veteran understands the love that comes with an animal, since he himself has dogs, he acknowledges that

.

"

," he says while recounting the pain with which they call him at any time of the night or the intensity of certain messages recorded on tombs: "Your mom and dad love you" .

This devotion and the desire of those who "do not want to leave their pet in the incinerator because it is as if they were burning something of theirs", according to Molon, are what make Casa Rosa last, the only animal cemetery in the entire region of Rome , the Lazio.

Molon has the

since 1984 and is proud of the history that this place brings together.

"It's a hundred years old. Who's going to take it from me?"

For this reason, and despite his advanced age, he assures with the firmness of someone who has been working on the same thing for decades that he will continue to dedicate himself to the historic Casa Rosa cemetery until the end, and that his children come after him: "The generations will continue" .

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