A fitting farewell for farmers’ best workmates

While Duncan and Lorna Humm never intended on starting a pet cremation business, it’s been a natural fit for the Mid Canterbury couple. Photo: Isla Humm

For Mid Canterbury deer farmer Duncan Humm, starting a pet cremation business was never part of the plan.

“I definitely never woke up one day thinking I’d like to start a cremation business,” he says. “It just sort of evolved.”

Humm, who is also co-founder of farming platform NZ Farming, runs Summerland Pet Cremation alongside his wife Lorna, a local veterinarian.

The idea grew over years of conversation, shaped by what Lorna saw daily in her work and a gap they both felt needed filling in Mid Canterbury.

Lorna has a lot of experience in supporting families through the euthanasia of their beloved pet, both at the vet clinic and in family homes.

 While cremation has always been an option for pets, she saw an opportunity to provide a more personal, compassionate and local service.

“Before we started,  if people wanted pet  cremation in Mid Canterbury, their only real option for their pet to travel over an hour away,” Duncan explains. “After everything families had just been through, it felt impersonal.”

For farmers, the situation was often more complicated. While many still bury dogs on the farm, that’s not always practical or possible — particularly for shepherds on contract, people renting, or families preparing to move. And for some dogs, burial just didn’t feel like enough.

“Farm dogs aren’t just dogs,” Duncan says. “They’re part of the team. Your best workmates. You spend every day with them, and when you lose one, it hits hard.”

The turning point came unexpectedly. One of Lorna’s farming clients, remembering the care she had shown when their dog was put down years earlier, rang with a question.

“Do you want to buy a crematorium?”

The couple had just sold their farm and moved to a lifestyle block near Wanaka.

Left behind on the property was a virtually new  pet cremation unit the previous owners no longer wanted.

“At first I said no,” Duncan laughs. “I thought we already had enough going on. But the next morning I woke up and thought — actually, why not? It actually makes a lot of sense, and fits with our life and Lorna’s experience. ”

Within months, the crematorium was relocated and set up on their farm. Summerland Pet Cremation was quietly born.

Most of the business now comes through local veterinary clinics. When a pet is euthanised, families are offered a local cremation option, removing the need for them to organise transport or make difficult decisions in the moment.

“If someone rings us directly, we just work around what suits them,” Duncan says. “But the goal is always the same — to make it as easy as possible on what’s already a really tough day.”

Families can choose between return and non-return cremation.

For return cremations, ashes are carefully processed and returned in the families’ choice of a simple eco box, ideal for ash scattering or planting,  a Rimu wooden urn which can be engraved,  beautiful ceramic urns made locally, or a wool urn.

 Some families choose to have ashes turned into Reterniti stones -   smooth remembrance stones they can hold in their hand.

 For non-return services, ashes are respectfully scattered in native and other tree plantings on the farm, giving pets a permanent resting place.

Behind the scenes, the process is meticulous.

Each animal is individually cremated, with settings adjusted by weight.

Once complete, ashes are refined to a consistent texture before being packaged and returned either to the clinic or directly to the family.

A thorough tracking system ensures animals are identified from start to finish, and the couple take great pride in ensuring that the process is seamless and personal.

“It’s not something people really think about, but it matters,” Duncan says. “People want to know their animal has been treated with care the whole way through.”

They’ve cremated everything from cats and dogs through to rabbits and birds. The crematorium can handle animals up to 350–400kg, making it suitable for most farm dogs, companion animals and even lifestyle pets.

What Duncan wasn’t prepared for was the emotional weight of the work.

“You expect it to be hard,” he says. “But the toughest part isn’t kids crying — it’s grown men folding when they lose a dog they’ve worked with for years. That’s a pain I can relate to on a deeply personal level.”

The experience has given him a deeper appreciation for vets and vet nurses, who deal with grief daily. It has also reinforced why doing the service locally matters.

“You wouldn’t want to be in this business if you were heartless,” he says. “Feeling it means you’re doing it right.”

The name Summerland reflects that care. In many cultures, the summer land is the place souls go on their next journey.

“Our farm feels like a pretty good place for that,” Duncan says. “Quiet, respectful, and close to home.”

Attitudes towards working dogs have changed dramatically over the years. Once treated as tools, they are now recognised as intelligent, loyal partners. Summerland offers farmers a way to honour that shift.

“There are still times when burying a dog on the farm feels right,” Duncan says. “But now there’s another option — one that lets people say goodbye , in a way that matches how much those dogs meant to them.”

For more information, go to summerland.nz