Fears over future of seafront pet cemetery after its caretaker is accused of burying animals on neighbouring scrubland

• Stephen Findlay, 77, has been running the pet cemetery on the North Sea shore in Cullen, Moray since 1992
• He has been accused of burying animals outside the borders of the burial ground by land owners Seafield Estates
• Caretaker insists he has complied with the company's demands but fears the cemetery's future is under threat 

By Hugo Gye for MailOnline

Published: 11:31 EST, 23 September 2015 | Updated: 13:20 EST, 23 September 2015

A picturesque pet cemetery overlooking the North Sea is under threat after the volunteer who runs it was accused of burying animals outside the grounds of the graveyard.

Caretaker Stephen Findlay, 77, has been running the one-acre site for 23 years so that hundreds of grieving animal owners have somewhere to pay their respects to beloved family pets.

As well as household animals such as dogs, cats and guinea pigs, Mr Findlay also buries washed-up seals and dolphins in the cemetery in Cullen, Moray, on the north coast of Scotland.

Threat: Stephen Findlay fears that the pet cemetery which he cares for is under threat thanks to the landlord

Moving: Two of the many memorials to beloved pets which currently stand in the cemetery in Cullen, on the North Sea coast

Public service: But the landowners have accused the cemetery of encroaching beyond its agreed grounds

But the company that owns the land claims he has broken their agreement by burying animals outside the grounds of the cemetery.

He insists that only stonework has encroached beyond the borders, and is worried that the future of the graveyard could be in danger over the dispute.

More than 1,000 locals have signed a petition in support of Mr Findlay, fearing that the much-loved community resource might be unavailable in future.

Andrew Norval, of landowner Seafield Estates, said: 'We have leased this area to Mr Findlay since 1995, and have met him regularly to discuss work there.

'At the most recent meeting it was noted that burials had been taking place outside the defined area, while some ground within the cemetery remained unused.

Picturesque: Pet owners love the spot because of the way it borders the rugged coast in northern Scotland

Entrance: A petition to save the beloved cemetery has gathered 1,000 signatures after being posted online

Tributes: Most of the graves contain personalised memorials to the animals buried beneath them

Memories: Locals say the pet cemetery has helped them cope with the loss of their pets by having somewhere to visit

'It was agreed that burials would meantime take place in this unused part of the site, and that he would also carry out some reinstatement to areas of outside land that had been disturbed.

'We recognise the importance of this site to the community and visitors, and will continue to work with Mr Findlay to manage the cemetery.'

Mr Findlay was ordered to remove slabs of concrete judged to overlap the boundary, and was told that unused land in the grounds was 'sufficiently large to cope with realistic future demand'.

The retired bin man said that he had complied with the firm's demands, removing piles of rocks from the site and dumping them on the seafront.

He added: 'The area that Seafield Estates has brought into dispute is just a few feet worth of borders, which they want filled in with grass.

'I can't understand why they are bothered about the land as there's nothing else that can be done with it - it's just a patch of wild grass. I had no intention of burying anything in those spaces.'

Extensive: But Mr Findlay insists he has not buried any animals beyond the grounds agreed with the landlords

Grief: Some locals fear the future of the project is now under threat thanks to the dispute with the landlord

Kind-hearted: Mr Findlay buries washed-up marine animals such as seals and dolphins alongside household pets

View: The burial ground stands in the shadow of a hilly slope on the outskirts of Cullen

The pet cemetery started in 1992, after a local doctor asked Mr Findlay to bury her pet spaniel and he later decided to bury his own Alsation, Bruce, nearby.

The burial ground is based along a stretch of seafront east of the village's harbour, and is sheltered by an overlooking hill.

Last year, one cat owner froze her dead pet until she could make the 500-mile trip from Birmingham to bury it in the beauty spot.

Barman Joe Simpson, 36, launched the petition after hearing the site could be in jeopardy because he was so grateful for Mr Findlay's kindness to local animal lovers such as him.

'I felt that there was a lot of local pride in the pet cemetery and the petition is really just a way to show that we're supporting him,' he said.

'There's quite a bit of unused land surrounding the cemetery which is just lying empty so there shouldn't really be an issue with allowing him to extend it a bit longer.

'He's done a lot for the community and many across the country who have lost a pet.'

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