MESA COUNTY, Colo (KKCO)--Claudia Waterman is a self described animal lover, so she knows just how attached people get to their pets. "These animals are their babies," she says. But it was a trip to a grave yard in Texas that sparked a thought that she just couldn't let go.

Waterman says, "It was a pet cemetery and they were also cremating animals, only they were doing it in a 50 gallon barrel." When she got back home all she could think about was the barrel. That’s all she could talk about too. So her husband decided to buy her a crematory.

Waterman says, "And I said, 'What is this?' And he said, 'I got sick and tired of hearing you talk about this, so there it is, now you're in business." That was back in 1997. That first day she cremated two animals and the Five Light's Crematory was born. Waterman says, "We have done iguanas, we've done guinea pigs, you name it, from the tiniest mouse all the way up to a horse."
Recently Waterman purchased a larger crematory. Now Five Light’s is able to accommodate a whole horse.

Waterman says when a pet dies options are limited. "You either put them in the land fill which is supposedly a dry landfill. Or you can bury them if you're in the county, not the city," she says.

Waterman also sells small urns or container, something she says can help keep your pet's memory alive. It can also be practical as well as portable for the family on the move. Being a certified bereavement facilitator, Waterman can also provide emotional support for families saying goodbye. "It's a situation were you need to have a lot of sympathy a lot of empathy. Everybody gets a hug because I know what it's like. Just last year two of my animals died. One was 18 and the other one was 15," says Waterman.