River Country Pet Loss and Cremation Center has opened in Saluda, offering a full range of services to bereaved pet owners, from burial at the family home to cremation and inurnment. Family gatherings and Celebration of Life services for the deceased pet are available, as well.

Founders and owners Bill Faulkner Jr. and Gregg Faulkner Sr., who own funeral home chapels in Tappahannock, Saluda and Mathews, said in a press release that they had recognized the need for a full-service pet loss center on the Middle Peninsula and Northern Neck “to help families celebrate the lives of their beloved pets” and “to help pet families plan for, experience, and cope with the loss of their pet.”

River Country believes that pets are vital members of the family, said the release, so the center has pledged to treat them like family, as well.

“Our goal will always be for you to feel confident that your cherished companion has received the dignity and respect they deserve in their passing,” said ...