The cemetery became popular after the burial of a dog belonging to Sarah Fairbrother, wife of Prince George, Duke of Cambridge.

The site is owned by the charity The Royal Parks and not open to the public except as part of occasional tours.

[4] Prince was crushed under a carriage wheel near Victoria Lodge in June 1882, a not uncommon fate for dogs in the park during this period.

[11] The burial markers are typical of early pet gravestones, which remained generally small and plain until the mid-20th century.

[11] Many of the graves have kerbstones and body stones, reflecting a similar trend in human burials of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

[6][14] The cemetery became popular "by accident" and by the time it was largely closed in 1903, due to lack of space, it had received around 1,000 burials.

[2][3] Topper, a fox terrier belonging to the park's Metropolitan Police station was also buried in the cemetery.

[20] Since its closure the cemetery, which is owned by the charity The Royal Parks, has been maintained as a heritage site but is off limits to the public due to the risk of vandalism.

[21] Tours of the cemetery and some nearby areas are currently sold by The Royal Parks for limited days each year at a cost of £10 per person.