Pet Cremation Facts

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If you find yourself in the market for a cremation memorial for your beloved pet (whether it be a pet cremation urn, a pet keepsake urn, or a piece of pet cremation jewelry) you may be feeling confused and even a little overwhelmed about the prospect of cremating an animal that has been a cherished part of your life and family. Here is a list of a few things that you may find helpful and interesting regarding cremation.

If you need help finding a good pet crematory, any veterinarian’s office in your local area will surely be able to help. Veterinarians, in fact, often provide cremation services themselves (though in many cases, the offices simply contract the services, and the customer may save money by working directly with the crematory). If a veterinarian’s referral is not sufficient, however, the International Association of Pet Crematories maintains a list of its members on-line. That group’s website estimate that there are more than 600 pet crematories in the United States (making them readily available in just about every medium-to-large-sized city) and that at least 400 of those would qualify as reputable businesses. Pet crematories are not highly regulated in most regions, so customers would do well to check closely with groups such as the IPCA, Veterinarian professional associations and even the Better Business Bureau before contracting pet cremation to any firm.

Unlike cremations for humans, no laws require the use of caskets or containers of any type during a pet cremation. Pet caskets are available (in a variety of styles and costs) for use at memorial ceremonies, and, so long as those caskets are made of biodegradable material, crematories will generally allow pets to be cremated in them.

Some crematories will offer customers the choice of having their pet cremated alone or with other animals (at a sometimes substantial cost savings). When animals are cremated with others, reputable crematories will have strict identification procedures to assure that remains are returned to the correct owners. Good crematories will be happy to explain these procedures to you in detail.

Pet crematories often offer special viewing services and, in preparation for these services, embalming is also offered.

The price for pet cremations can often vary widely from place to place. Reputable crematories will be glad to give price information (and answer all other questions, for that matter) over the phone. Unlike funeral homes and cemeteries for people, however, the business practices of crematories are not heavily regulated. So consumer’s would do well to be aggressive negotiators, even if grief over the loss of a pet make the visit to the crematory an emotionally charged experience.

Many options for storing your pets remains are available. A large selection of creative pet urns and keepsake urns can be found on-line, and families should feel comfortable choosing one whose style suites them best. Generally speaking, pet remains will require one cubic inch of urn space for each pound that an animal weighed.

For families who may want to share a pets remains amongst several households or family members, keepsake pet urns or pet cremation pendants are increasingly popular today for storing small amounts of ashes.

For families wishing to bury or scatter a pets remains, there are generally no restrictions against the practice. This is especially true if the family intends to scatter or bury the ashes on private property with the owner’s permission.

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