About Envirocin

 

We believe that a pet is a part of the family. Animals give us so much love and are faithful friends to the end. It is only right that when their time comes to die, we respect all that they have done for us and given to us.

 

Envirocin's reccommended Veterinarians in Gauteng

 

Envirocin Pet Crematorium is the largest licensed pet crematorium in the country. We are continuously moved by the special bond that exists between people and their beloved pets, a bond which is most evident when a pet dies. Although it is often very traumatic, the relief that people show in knowing that the body fo their pet has been properly taken care of is always evident.

 

At Envirocin we believe that we have pioneered a caring, professional and highly personalised service that all pet owners deserve when their pet dies. Much time and money have been invested in the training of our staff to deal with the entire process in a caring and professional manner. In addition, our cremation facilities are state of the art and we have a beautiful memorial park which you are more than welcome to visit.

 

We strongly encourage you to visit our crematorium and memorial park and compare it with those of other service providers. We are certain that you will be pleasantly surprised and entrust Envirocin to take care of your beloved pets' cremation.

 

The many thank you cards that we have received bear testimony to this and the peace of mind and comfort that our service has given to people has been immensely satisfying.

 

It is extremely important that the service provider you choose to perform your pets' cremation is able to do the cremation properly and without delay. At Envirocin we have a total of 6 cremators suituated in Johannesburg and Durban, which ensures that there are no problems with regards to these two issues.

The Envirocin Team

 

At Envirocin we have endeavoured to nurture a strong team culture. We believe that we have succeeded in this regard and that our service excellence is a result of this culture. Much emphasis is placed on professionalism and ensuring the pets' dignity. All three founder members are still actively involved in the business and not a single staff member has ever left us.

 

Dave Oxenham Dave is one of the founder members of Envirocin and manages all operational aspects of the business.		Dean Webb Dean is one of the founder members of Envirocin and manages the area of finance.
Mark Slaughter Mark is one of the founder members of Envirocin and manages the marketing aspects of the business. He is currently managing our Durban operation.		Dellen Harvey Dellen started with Envirocin in 2000 and is Envirocins' office manager. She handles all administrative and account enquiries.

 

 

These staff members are responsible for collections from veterinary clinics and homes and will return your pets ashes to the vet or your home:	Philemon Maloka	Johnathan Mukwevho	Honest Molefe
Daniel Lefaphana	Ronald Mokgawa	Patrick Radebe	Morris Mkhabele

Envirocin in the News

 

Fido becomes a gem of a dog

22 July 2007

Isaac Mahlungu

Even after he’s dead and gone, your pet can shine as a highly compressed piece of carbon.

Dogs are man’s best friend and diamonds are a girl’s. Now you can have the best of both worlds — by having your beloved pet transformed into a glittering “memorial” jewel after its death.

Envirocin, a company started in 1996 by three friends, transforms the ashes of your pet into an industrial diamond. The company recently acquired the exclusive South African rights to the growing US phenomenon . For R21000 you can transform the ashes of your dog or cat into a .29 carat yellow diamond. For a mere R140000, your pet can be turned into a 1.5 carat blue diamond . The synthetic diamonds are “perfect” duplicates of natural diamonds.

Dean Webb, one of the founders of Envirocin, said that after 11 years in the pet cremation industry, he had learnt how fond people were of their pets. “We know people are attached to their pets as much as they are attached to their family.”

Initially, the US company that offers the service did so for human remains only, but had now started using pet remains, Webb said. Webb said a diamond created from a pet’s remains carried a certain sentimental value. “It could have the same value as other diamonds of the same carat, but to a person who [used the remains of their pet for the raw material], it is actually priceless.” He said he read about the process, being carried out in Chicago by a company called LifeGem, in a magazine last year. In May, he and his business partners flew to Chicago where they met company bosses at LifeGem. “It became a natural extension of our business and we then got the rights [to start LifeGem SA],” Webb said.

The process of making the diamond seems simple but takes a minimum of six months, depending on the type of diamond. The carbon from the pet’s remains is converted to graphite after a purification process. It is then subjected to high pressure and temperatures of between 1600°C and 2000 °C , and turns into a diamond. The process takes up to nine months for the more expensive blue diamonds.

“Nowadays you’d find someone living in Joburg, but in six months’ time they are living in Canada...They can always carry the diamond with them,” said Webb . The diamonds can be worn as pendants or rings, or framed — or even mounted on the mantlepiece in the lounge.

 

 

Memory Lane

 

Memory lane.... what, exactly is, "Memory Lane"?  We have often watched you with fascinated interested as you go down your various "Memory Lanes".  We are fascinated as one memory can invoke so many different emotions in you that it often leaves us confused.  For example, you listed to an old song one day and your skipping around with all the joys, then, a couple of months later, you hear the same song and burst out crying on our shoulders telling us all about it!

 

We have come to the conclusion that "Memory Lane" is personal.  It's your choice.  It's your heart and, more importantly, it your memory.  Also, there are memories you like to cling to and others that you delete from your memory and yet, most of you have a fear of the unknown and cling to your most precious memories so protectively - even when it comes to us.

 

The moment of birth, in any form, comes with only ONE guarantee – we all will die.  It is a known fact that our life span is considerably shorter than yours and we know that you are absolutely heartbroken at the "final" goodbye, and you lock our memories tight in your heart and carry a photo of us in your wallet which bring you to tears at the check outs, or wear our endearing smile tightly kept in a locket around your neck...

 

Most of the funerals we have attended have been in our garden.  A box, strewn with straw, big enough for the departed pet is placed into a special part of the garden (next to the fish pond, under a tree, in the bottom of a large pot into which a flowering shrub is planted.  We all attend the funeral, then go back into the house and light a candle and sit in silence spending precious thoughts of the departed one.

 

There are ways for you to carry our memories further with you.  You could give your favourite photograph of us to a portrait painter who would create a masterpiece to hang over your mantle piece, or in the hallway where you would see us as soon as you walk through the front door, your imagination will lead you to happy memories as you remember the joyous greetings we shared - you can see the love in my eyes when you gaze at the portrait.  Alternatively, you could enlarge your favourite photo and have it framed and placed wherever you like. Research has shown that some folk go to measures a little more drastic than this - from knitting jerseys from our hair (which is first spun into yarn, then knitted) to taxidermy. 

 

Now Shirley vowed to her sweet eight year old self when her first guinea pig, Timmy died, that one day when she grew up and her pet died, she would have it "stuffed" like all the beautiful animals she had seen in the museum when her Dad took her there.  Many years later, the day arrived, when Lady, Shirley's prize St Bernard and life long companion was dying of old age, Shirley, Lady and the vet knew it wouldn't be long now.  Shirley set herself to call the taxidermist whose name cropped up first in the directory and made the call...

 

This is what she had to do...  The moment Lady died, she was to take Lady's body to either the vet or a butcher and have her insides removed and the rest of the body frozen solid.  Once in the frozen state, the "carcass" was to be sent to the taxidermist as soon as possible together with various photo's of Lady.  Upon Lady's arrival, her skin would be removed from her body, a cast made of the skeleton, a mould made from fibreglass while the fur (hide or skin) was being treated and tanned and the eyes being made up out of glass.  Once the mould and the hide were ready, the skin would be pulled over the mould and the skillful, artistic taxidermist would get to work at creating the facial expressions Shirley found so endearing in Lady.  Lady would then be shipped home and be next to Shirley for the rest of forever.

 

However, Shirley, on finding out the procedures of taxidermy just couldn't go through with this life long dream of hers - she just couldn't face what would happen to the body of her dearly beloved Lady and used the time left to Lady to investigate other forms of keeping her memory alive.

 

Her search led her to a beautiful funeral parlour and grave yard for pets and a remembrance wall.  The graveyard is set in luxurious garden surroundings; the body of the deceased is gently laid in a quality wooden casket and laid to rest.  Shirley could go and visit Lady for a leisurely hour or so whenever the mood took her.  She could adorn Lady's "grave" with her photo, bring flowers and other little gifts.

 

But this isn't all that Shirley's researching taught her...  Should she decide to cremate Lady's remains, she could have her ashes converted into a diamond of the own choice of carat and colour which she could either wear as a ring or around her neck all the time - ensuring that Lady would be with her every breath she takes and that our memories will never fade.  Shirley also discovered the we don't have to be deceased to have a diamond created out of us - a good couple of handfuls of hair from our daily brush could do the trick just as well!

 

Stars can also be named after departed (and living) pets in various constellations throughout the galaxy (the Egyptian skies boast of a constellation called "Canine").  Once you have named your star you will receive a certificate, a copy of which is recorded at NASA.  Thing is, unless we are Egyptian, how are you going to see the star in me in an Egyptian sky?

 

Our History

 

The idea of starting a business involved in the cremation of pets first originated when the three members of Envirocin were still at university in Stellenbosch. During their holidays spent in Johannesburg, they started researching the idea of pet cremation after discovering a local newspaper article describing how a distraught man found his own deceased pet on a council landfill. It soon became apparent that a huge void existed when it came to the disposal of bodies of deceased pets.

 

Dean Webb, Mark Slaughter and Dave Oxenham approached 20 veterinarians in the Johannesburg area in order to ascertain whether or not they would be interested in making use of the envisaged service.The response was an overwhelming yes and the business was born in May 1996.

 

Initially, Envirocins' client base consisted of approximately 20 vets in Johannesburg as very little awareness existed with regard to the abhorrent practices which were taking place at that time. The dumping of pets bodies does still take place in some areas, but the practice is certainly on the decline since most vets are totally opposed to it and would much rather advise their clients to have the body disposed of in a hygienic and dignified manner. Today, Envirocin boasts a client base of over 200 veterinary practices in Gauteng and 40 in Durban. Pet owners are no longer content with not knowing where or how their pet was disposed of and are now insisting that their pet receive the kind of treatment worthy of a friend or family member.

 

Envirocin is a transparent, professional operation and the we encourage veterinarians to inspect our premises at any time. The Johannesburg crematorium is situated in Kya Sands, north of Johannesburg, and the Durban crematorium is situated at the Heron Farm on Georgedale Road in Cato Ridge.

 

Envirocin has been in operation for 15 years and in that time we have come to understand the amazing bond that exists between South African pet owners and their faithful animal companions. We will continue to strive to improve all of our services over the next decade and welcome all feedback from you in order to achieve this.