Little Angel Educational Memorial Programme

Which Animals are Suitable?

We accept donations from certain companion animal species, including dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, etc. Please discuss with your veterinarian to determine whether your pet is suitable for donation.

Important Considerations:

• We partner with Goodbye Dear for professional handling and health-safety procedures. Please understand that this company cannot be changed.
• If you prefer a specific cremation service, or if your clinic or hospital has protocols that must be followed, this programme may not be suitable.
• Pets with suspected or confirmed zoonotic diseases, pets that have received chemotherapy or radiotherapy within the past month, or pets involved in legal cases, such as poisoning or animal-welfare cases, may not be accepted.

Thank you for your understanding and support.

Points to Note

Options for Your Pet's Ashes

• Return of Ashes: You can choose to have your pet’s ashes returned to you at no cost by selecting this option on the consent form. The designated animal cremation company, Goodbye Dear, will contact you when the ashes are ready for collection.
• Farewell Ceremony*:If you wish to have a farewell ceremony for your pet before it is sent to our College for teaching, please select this option on the consent form. The designated animal cremation company, Goodbye Dear, will contact you to arrange the ceremony. The cost will be borne by you.
• No Farewell Ceremony: If you do not choose a farewell ceremony, please say goodbye to your pet before the designated animal cremation company, Goodbye Dear, collects the body. You will not be able to arrange a farewell ceremony for your pet after the teaching activity.

*Please note that the Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences at City University of Hong Kong (JCC) is not responsible for the farewell ceremony or any associated arrangements. Your pet’s body will be transferred to our College for teaching after the ceremony.

How do I participate?

If you wish to enrol your pet after reading the information on this website, please speak with your veterinarian and complete the donor’s section of the Donation Consent Form*.

Your veterinarian will also provide a brief medical history of your pet in the veterinarian’s section of the form. A complete medical history will provide the greatest educational benefit to our students.

*Please be assured that students will not see any personal information that could identify you.

What happens next?

Upon receiving the completed consent form from your veterinarian, our pathologists will review the information and confirm whether your pet’s body can be accepted for donation. We will notify you by telephone whether the case is accepted or rejected. If accepted, the designated animal cremation company, Goodbye Dear, will contact either the clinic or you, if your pet’s body is at home, to arrange collection*.

You can expect to receive your pet’s ashes within four months after the body donation is accepted. A brief report of the findings from the teaching post-mortem examination will be provided to your veterinarian free of charge within a few days after the examination. Please contact your veterinarian if you would like to know more about the findings.

After the teaching post-mortem examination is completed, your pet’s remains will be cremated by the designated animal cremation company, Goodbye Dear. If you have chosen to have the ashes returned, the company will contact you when they are ready for collection.

*Please note that the JCC team will not monitor the programme after 5:00 pm on weekdays or during public holidays and weekends. If a pet passes away at a clinic or at home outside office hours, clinic staff or the pet owner may contact Goodbye Dear directly at 2980 3332 and state that the pet is being donated to the “Little Angel Memorial Programme”. The cremation company will then assist with body collection on the same day.

Summary of Workflow

Upon the passing of an eligible pet - please refer to “Which Animals Are Suitable?” on the website - and once you have decided to participate in the programme, either at the veterinary clinic or at home, the workflow is as follows:

The owner completes the online Donation Consent Form

When the application is received, the JCC administration team will contact the listed attending veterinarian by email within one working day* to complete another online form containing additional clinical information about the pet for assessment.

Upon receipt of the completed form, the JCC pathologists will assess the case within one working day*.

Acceptance of admission into the program.
 

• Please note that not all pets will be accepted into the programme.
• Please refer to “Which Animals Are Suitable?” on the website for more details about which animals may be accepted.
• Pets that may not be accepted include those with suspected or confirmed zoonotic disease, pets that have received chemotherapy or radiotherapy within one month of their last treatment, or pets involved in legal cases, including poisoning or animal-welfare cases.
• If the case is rejected, the JCC administration team will contact the owner and attending veterinarian by telephone or email.

When the case is accepted, the JCC administration team will contact the owner by telephone on the same day* to reconfirm the owner’s selected options for the farewell ceremony^ and return of ashes, and arrange for Goodbye Dear to collect the body from the clinic or home, ideally on the same day. Please refer to “What Happens Next?” on the website.

^IMPORTANT: Owners will NOT be able to say farewell to their pet after the body has been transferred to our College for teaching.

Following body collection, Goodbye Dear will arrange the farewell ceremony if the owner wishes to purchase this option.

The JCC administration team will record the received case in two online files, shared separately with the JCC pathologists and Goodbye Dear, as references for teaching and logistical arrangements.

JCC will send a post-mortem report to the listed attending veterinarian within four months after accepting the body donation. The veterinarian will contact the owner regarding the report.

The Goodbye Dear cremation company will contact the owner regarding delivery or collection of the pet’s ashes if this option has been selected.

*Please note: The JCC administration team will not monitor the programme after 5:00 pm on weekdays or during public holidays and weekends. If a pet passes away at a clinic or at home outside office hours, clinic staff or the pet owner may call Goodbye Dear directly at 2980 3332 and indicate that the pet is being donated to the “Little Angel Programme”. Goodbye Dear will then assist with body collection on the same day.

Contact Us

Should you have any questions, please contact us at:

Tel: (852) 3442 5605 / 3442 7255
Email: little.angel@cityu.edu.hk
Office hours: Mon to Fri (except public holidays), 9:00 am – 5:00 pm*

*If a pet passes away at a clinic or at home outside office hours, clinic staff or the pet owner may contact Goodbye Dear directly at 2980 3332 and state that the pet is being donated to the “Little Angel Memorial Programme”. The cremation company will then assist with body collection on the same day.

A place to remember, a love like no other.

Thank You! Little Angels (in no particular order):

Message from our students

“Thank you for donating the body your beloved one. We treasured her as our noble teacher.” (Nathan, Cohort 2020)