Rainbow bridge to memorialise kids’ dead pets vandalised – and everyone’s saying the same thing

A rainbow bridge created by a Girl Scout troop to memorialise pets that have passed away has been vandalised – and people think anti-LGBTQ+ bigots are behind it.

The Biggest Little Rainbow Bridge – located in Crissie Caughlin Park in Reno, Nevada – was created by local Girl Scout Troop 508.

The troop made the wooden bridge as a “beautiful and peaceful place” where people could come to “mourn the loss of our beloved four-legged family members who have crossed the rainbow bridge into the great beyond and reflect on the memories we have made with them”.

The bridge, which was originally a reddish-brown colour, was painted with different coloured stripes that when looked at together create a rainbow to represent the ‘rainbow bridge’ – a concept which refers to the safe, mythical place where pets go when they pass away.

When the bridge was announced by the Parks and Recreation department of the Reno city government on social media, many locals praised the thoughtful initiative put together by the youngsters and said they would visit to remember the special animals in their lives.

Others, rather tongue-in-cheek, noted the rainbow colours would likely offend anti-LGBTQ+ bigots and “infuriate those that can’t comprehend a rainbow is not always an LGBTQ symbol”, which they described as a “two birds, one stone” win.

Not long afterwards, however, the bridge was sadly vandalised, with white paint being poured over the coloured-wood.

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“I just want to say congratulations to whoever did this. Congratulations on defacing a bridge made by little girls no older than 12 so that people could say goodbye to their pets,” a local resident said, as quoted by a local Instagram page.

“It breaks my heart,” they added.

An image of the vandalism was subsequently shared on Reddit, where people discussed whether it was anti-LGBTQ+ bigots who damaged the bridge because they may have mistakenly believed the bridge was something to do with the LGBTQ+ community.

“You just know some low IQ moron thought this was LGBTQ+ related and not for people grieving their dead pets,” one Reddit user suggested.

“Too bad the type of people that do this typically don’t have higher than a second grade reading level. Stupid is as stupid does,” another said.

“I am utterly disgusted by people… it must have been some illiterate, homophobic idiot who equates every rainbow as a symbol of homosexuality. And even if it was, who f****** cares? Regardless, this is a bridge meant to honour pets we have lost and it is such a beautiful idea,” a third wrote.

This is not the first time rainbow-coloured things have been vandalised on the basis they are rainbow-coloured.

Back in 2023, in Bristol in the UK, a rainbow doormat belonging to author Susie Day and her partner was vandalised with black spray paint which blocked out the rainbow stripes.

The act of vandalism sparked a show of solidarity from the couple’s neighbours, who the couple said bought rainbow doormats of their own to show their support.

“Everyone was really shocked and we’ve had such great messages and people coming round to say how disgusted they were someone would do this,” Day told the Bristol Post.

“Everyone has said that’s not what this street is like, and one of our neighbours said they were going to get a rainbow doormat themselves, and now a lot of the other neighbours are doing the same, and have ordered them.”

She added: “So from just our rainbow doormat, there’s now going to be loads.

“That will be a really nice thing for us, to go out and walk down the street and see that there’s this support.”

According to a local news outlet, the Scouting troop will be repainting the bridge ahead of an opening ceremony on 7 December.

The police are reportedly investigating the vandalism.