Dunedin student Chelsea Evans weeps when she thinks about never being able to say goodbye to her cat Patrick, who was dumped by Dunedin City Council contractors.
The 21-year-old University of Otago student called SPCA Otago recently to ask if her missing cat had been taken to the shelter.
He had not but SPCA staff suggested she contact Downer to see if any of the dead animals collected from Dunedin streets matched a description of her pet.
A Downer staff member told her they had found Patrick near where she lived in The Glen and the cat had been ''dumped in the landfill'', Miss Evans said.
The news left her ''gobsmacked''.
''My cat was only missing a week.''
She started to cry when she started talking about a lack of closure she was experiencing.
Pet owner Josie Harris said she called Downer yesterday to question staff about dumping dead pets in the landfill without attempting to find the owners.
She expected the contractor to bag the animal, and put it in a council-owned freezer, while attempts were made to find the owner.
The attempts should include publishing a photo and description of the animal to try to find the owners.
Pet owners searching for missing animals were ''left in the lurch'' and would be ''horrified'' no attempt was being made by contractors to reunite them, Ms Harris said.
Council transport group manager Richard Saunders said it was ''very upsetting'' for anyone to have a pet run over.
''We'd hope the driver who hit them would stop and try to find the owners or take it to a nearby vet clinic or the SPCA for identification.''
When the council's animal services team or Downer found a dead dog they checked for a registration tag so the owner could be contacted.
If a dog was not wearing a collar and animal services attended, they would check for a microchip, he said.
As cats were not registered, and most were not microchipped, it made it difficult to find their owners.
When a dead cat was found, it was left by the side of the road to allow time for it to be collected by its owner.
Usually the owner finds them but if this did not happen, the animal was removed, he said.
The public usually did a good job of sharing information when a dead pet was found and it often led to the owner
being located.
The council did not have plans to store dead animals or publish their details.
''We don't currently have funding to pay for this, and I'm not aware of a big call for this service.
''However, if it's something the community feels strongly about I'd encourage them to submit to the council.''
