How to honor your beloved pets that have crossed the 'Rainbow Bridge' at the LA Zoo's ofrenda

Published Oct 8, 2024 5:00 AM

Three colorful altars are set up in an outside space with fake green grass lining the ground. Each altar is covered in photos, marigold flowers, and other meaningful items. A black and white dog statue, with its fake fur designed to look like a skeleton, is sitting on a raised platform near the middle.

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If you’re mourning a dog, cat, or other four-legged friend who crossed the Rainbow Bridge, you can honor their memory at the L.A. Zoo’s “Beloved Pets Ofrenda.”

The ofrenda, created in partnership with the Plaza de la Raza Cultural Center for the Arts and Education, is an opportunity for people to honor their cherished companions that’ve died.

Coral Barreiro, the zoo’s manager of community programs, told LAist it started as a way to honor her lost pet, a 13-year-old Yorkie, and share her Mexican American culture with the city.

“Most of us have suffered loss in some form throughout our lives and, you know, the ofrenda was a way to share in that all collectively,” she said. “Also to admire the Mexican culture and the way they celebrate life through the ofrenda.”

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About the ofrenda

Ofrenda, which means “offering” in Spanish, is a customizable altar that honors our loved ones who’ve passed away.

It’s an essential aspect of Día de los Muertos, which is typically celebrated on Nov. 1 and Nov. 2. They can include photos, food, trinkets, candles, marigold flowers, decorations, and other meaningful items.

The “Beloved Pets Ofrenda” offers people a chance to honor the connection between humans and animals, as well as express empathy for all living things, according to the zoo.

Barreiro said it isn’t limited to furry friends, she’s seen pictures of a fig beetle and “so many fish.” They received about 1,000 photos last year, and she added that there’s a lot of power in the space.

An altar known as an ofrenda is covered in a white table cloth and colorful photos, flowers, and statues on three tiered levels. The white wall in the background is lined with vertical orange garlands. A green arch extends from the back of the ofrenda, dotted with greenery.

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“I felt silly, this pain is so severe,” she said. “I'd lost my mother, and I felt horrible with also losing my dog, and I'm like, is this weird? And seeing other people that felt the same way as I did … I was part of something, you know.”

The ofrenda also features an interpretation of the Rainbow Bridge, arching over each altar.

You can learn more about ofrendas and how to create your own here.

How to be a part of it

The ofrenda opened this past weekend and will be available through Nov. 3.

Location: L.A. Zoo, 5333 Zoo Drive
Hours: Weekends Oct. 5 – Nov. 3 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Special holiday hours: Indigenous Peoples’ Day, Oct. 14 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m

People are invited to print photos of their pets from their phone, draw their own picture with provided art supplies, or bring some from home (the zoo prefers smaller 4x6 images to make sure there’s room for everyone).

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The zoo will hand out frames that you can decorate, and you can also create your own marigold art.

Three people, two women and a man, are standing between a set of black tables with a purple patterned table cloth lining the middle in an outside space. They're all wearing dusty-green shirts with patches on their left sleeves. A pile of wooden frames are set up on the side, and another small group people are standing on the other side of the tables.

Staff will be there to help from 10 a.m. through 5 p.m. every weekend, but the ofrenda will still be available during the week so people can contribute at any time.

Maria Jimenez Torres, Plaza de la Raza’s executive director, said in a statement this is a time to honor, remember, and salute our loved ones.

“In any family who loves their pets, animals are a part of the family and our lives, so an [altar] to remember them with more joy than sorrow… is fitting and healing,” she said in a statement.