Dog corpses thrown away like rubbish
On Thursday, 15 January, the police intervened after several dog carcasses were discovered, some in torn body bags, discarded near the Cul de Sac pier. Among these abandoned bodies were Marcus and Baki. Their owners believed they had been taken to a funeral service to be cremated. The reality is brutal: the animals were discarded like rubbish.
On 9 January, M.G. had Marcus, her sick boxer, euthanised. She entrusted the body to a funeral home on the French side, recommended by her vet. She specified that she wanted to collect the ashes and attend the cremation. Despite her multiple calls, she received few responses. On 15 January, the police contacted her: Marcus's body had been found, his identification chip removed. It was the vet who recognised the animal. "What they did to Marcus is despicable, it's totally disrespectful. He was part of the family, he didn't deserve to be treated like that," laments M.G. Today, she has ashes, without knowing if they are really Marcus's. On the same day, A.L. had Baki, his 5-year-old dog suffering from an incurable disease, euthanised at home. Distraught, he took the body to the funeral home in a box with a yellow lid and paid €250 in cash to retrieve the ashes. He too went six days without any news before receiving a call from the police: Baki had been found, still in his box.
"My dog was so sick that the funeral home didn't even touch him. He still had his identification chip," said A.L. "You pay for a service, for dignity, and you find your dog thrown away like rubbish. They took advantage of people's grief." The two owners filed a complaint against the company for "breach of trust".
The version that raises questions
The funeral advisor, who did not respond to our requests for comment, is said to have developed this business due to the lack of solutions on the French side. The funeral home denies any involvement: "It was the advisor who managed this on her own, not us. " However, the company allegedly provided cold storage rooms for the animal remains. According to one witness, the advisor had previously admitted to paying a relative to transport the bodies to the incinerator on the Dutch side of Pointe Blanche: "the driver encountered a problem and unloaded the bodies with the intention of returning." This version raises many questions. Under what conditions were the bodies transported? Why was Marcus's microchip removed? Why was Baki never taken out of his box? How many other animals suffered the same fate? Numerous similar testimonies are flooding social media.
No alternative on the island
This case reveals a structural problem. Several veterinarians admit to having referred their clients to this funeral home, some despite their doubts, due to a lack of alternatives. On the island, only the ISDND (non-hazardous waste storage facility), managed by Verde SXM, provides rendering services. French law prohibits home burials, except under strict conditions that are almost impossible to meet on the island. As a result, with no legal options available, many owners turn to the Galion site to bury their animals themselves, which is illegal. "It's been known for years that there are no other solutions for honouring our animals in a decent manner," says one resident. In Saint Martin, the need for transparent and controlled solutions has never been more urgent. Out of respect for their memory, the editorial team has chosen to publish photos of Baki and Marcus during their lifetime. Today, they have become symbols of a neglected animal cause in Saint Martin.
