Hate mail ordeal of 'Cruella De Vil'

Oliver Stallwood|Metro13 April 2012

A taxidermist has gone into hiding after receiving death threats over her latest venture - turning pets into pillows.

Jeanette Hall was inundated with hatefilled e-mails from all over the world and dubbed 'Cruella De Vil' when news of her service spread online.

The 29-year-old, who also received hundreds of orders, said: 'I had people threatening to burn down my house.'

Now, she says will have to wait until the furore dies down, before she can continue offering her macabre mementoes to bereaved pet owners. The taxidermist drew death threats after an article about her work appeared on the Net.

She charges ?34 for a cat, ?40-?65 for a dog and ?80 for a horse. All owners need to do is freeze Patch or Felix long enough for her to skin and stuff the animal and turn it into a handy soft furnishing.

'I love making animals come back to life,' said the taxidermist, from Nevada.

'You get an animal that's blasted and shot up, and you think, "how on Earth am I going to fix this?". But it comes back to life again. I love getting the expression in the eyes.'

While orders flooded in from customers delighted at the prospect of snuggling up on the sofa again with their four-legged friends, she also found herself running a gauntlet of hate, being called 'sick' and the 'devil incarnate'.

One of Britain's top taxidermists, Mike Gadd, said owners should think carefully before getting a pet stuffed.

Of the Pet Pillows, he said: 'This sounds pretty sick really. Would you really want to do that with your pet? No.'

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