Pet Cremation Cost

Typical costs:

• Pet cremation typically costs between $55 and $100 for small animals such as birds, rabbits and ferrets -- as well as puppies and kittens.
• Pet cremation typically costs between $100 and $150 for cats, as well as dogs up to 50 pounds, with toy and miniature dogs falling at the lower end of the range and mid-sized dogs at the higher end.
• Pet cremation typically costs between $150 and $350 for dogs between 50 and 120 pounds and up, with very large dogs falling at the high end.

• Pet cremation services often have someone on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• After you call, the company often will pick up the pet from the home or veterinary clinic and deliver it to the facility. A staff member then tags the pet with an identification number, and cremates the animal in a special furnace that reduces the body to sand-like particles.
• The facility places the ashes either in a sealed bag or a tin or cardboard box, then either holds them for pick-up or delivers them to the owner.
• Some pet cemeteries that also do cremation offer free pet bereavement support groups.

• Some crematories charge an added fee of about $45 to pick-up the body after hours and on weekends.
• Some crematories allow the pet owner to view the cremation, sometimes for an added fee of about $25 or more.
• Urns to hold the ashes typically cost $50 to $150 for a classic bronze, brass or enamel vase, depending on size, but can run as high as $1,000 for a large wax-cast urn in an elaborate shape. Experts recommend choosing urn size based on the pet's pre-cremation body weight, with one cubic inch of space per pound. AngelAshes.com[1] offers urns, as does PerfectMemorials.com[2] .
• An engraved nameplate for the urn can cost about $10 to $25.

• Some crematories offer discounts of more than 50 percent for pet owners who choose a communal cremation where the pet is cremated with other animals and the ashes sometimes are scattered on the facility grounds by staff.

• To find a pet cremation facility, ask your veterinarian or your local animal shelter, both of which might have relationships with reputable facilities. Or, The Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement[3] has a list of pet crematories and cemeteries by state.
• Tip: When you find a cremation facility, ask whether they do mass or individual cremations. Some facilities that do mass cremations divvy up the ashes, so each owner gets a mixture of ashes from all of the animals. And, if the facility does mass cremations and does not return the ashes, ask how they dispose of them, since some facilities send remains to landfills.
• Tip: Ask whether you can take a tour of the facility, and whether the facility will guarantee its service policies in writing.

1.  www.angelashes.com/
2.  www.perfectmemorials.com/pet-urns/?gclid=CO7B2-nuwI0CFRlmWAod-GbvLQ
3.  www.aplb.org/services/aftercare.html

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