Memorisation and cremation for pets is one of the fastest growing funeral markets in the world, especially in the UK and the USA. Funeral business is blooming, as an ever-growing number of pet owners consider giving their animals a more formal send-off.
According to an official research, almost a quarter of the UK’s pet owners either have organised funeral services for their pets already or would consider doing it one day.
There are more than 50 pet cemeteries across Britain alone, with services reaching up to £400 for private cremations and even more for burials.
Pet Cremation - The trend
There are two major factors contributing to the rise in demand for pet-cantered services in the last years.
The first one is the fact that more and more Baby Boomers become “empty-nesters”, which is a premise for them to own a pet as a way to receive companionship and nurturing.
The second largest generation group, the millennials are a pet owners, as well. The combination of rising pet ownership and the humanisation of their care boosts the pet cremation industry.
The second factor that helped to fuel the increasing demand for pet death care services is the growing affirmation of grief as a natural reaction to loss. As valued family members, it’s natural to mourn pets passing.
Cremation keepsake for ashes by Pulvis Art Urns - buy now
The Statistics
Undoubtedly, pet funerals are becoming a nationwide trend both in the UK and in the USA. For example, around 15% of the funeral homes in America offer pet death care services, while in the UK this number is roughly 12%.
In Britain, as many as 12,000 pet funerals take place annually, while in the USA more than 550,000 took place in 2014 alone, according to the official statistics.
Cremation, however, is a preferred option when it comes to pet death care services. According to a survey by Pet Loss Professionals Alliance, there are nearly 1.9 million pet funerals annually, of which 99% end up with cremation.
The Cost of Pet Cremation
It is understandable that people mourn their pet’s passing, but at the same time, it is often not reasonable to spend thousands on a pet death care service. The prices vary dramatically depending on many factors.
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For instance, at Penwith, a British based pet crematorium, prices range from £42 for a hamster or guinea pig, up to £187 for a large dog. This price excludes the cremation memorials, such as pet urns and ashes jewellery, which differ according to the factors such as design, materials and purpose.
Cremating a Pet - What you should know?
The body is placed in the cremation chamber and then subjected to the exceedingly high heat of 800 to 1200 degrees Celsius. This reduces the biological matter to dust and bones, which is then being pulverised
Watch this cat cremation video of the whole cremation process :
The total time for the cat cremation is about two hours or less. It is almost the same with dogs, depending on the size of the dog. The cremains are then placed into a small container that the crematorium provides. Usually after that the ashes are transferred to a cremation urn or keepsake.
You can usually choose two types of pet cremation - private or witnessed cremation. In the first case your pet is cremated alone in a crematory chamber and then the ashes are given to you. Witnessed cremation allow the family to witness the cremation if desired. Sometimes an additional fee is charged for you to view the process.
What happens in the crematory chamber ?
The intense heat of the crematory chamber vaporises any soft tissues and reduces what is left to bones and dusty ashes.
Any type of metal that was in or on the animal such as stainless steel pins or a buckle on the collar is removed by hand or with a magnet.
When bones are pulverised (grinded into small fine particles) they turn into a sand-like powder, which is usually white or greyish in colour.
Pet cremation ashes
What to do with the Ashes of a Pet
Quite often people are unsure what to do with the ashes of their pet. This is personal and everyone should decide what suits their furry friend best, but here are some ideas that we picked - they work for pets as well.
10 Unique Ideas for Cremation Ashes
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Pet Urn Size Guide – Calculate by Weight
Picture a Chihuahua standing next to a Mastiff – these dogs have different needs! Likewise, not every urn can accommodate all pets. When shopping for pet cremation urns, you’ll notice that each urn will list its volume or capacity in cubic inches. Depending on the size of the animal, you may need a smaller or larger cremation urn to hold the ashes.
The general rule of thumb is that you’ll need at least 1 cubic inch for each pound that the animal weighs. For example, a dog that weighs 20 pounds will need an urn with a capacity of at least 20 cubic inches.
Everyone in this world will have an ending to his or her life long journey. That is a fundamental fact that most of the pet owners have already realised. The growing pet funeral businesses are evidence that we, humans certainly develop very deep emotions connection with our pets and even after their passing, we want them to be treated in a very special way and show them for the last time how much we cherish and love them.
Pet Urns for Ashes by Pulvis
Saying goodbye to a furry pet friend and choosing the right pet urn for ashes, to honor your precious moments together, is not an easy task. We designed those remarkable memorial pet urns, so we can help you celebrate a life filled with love and happy memories.
Thank you for reading this article. If you are planning to purchase some of our pet memorials, use the coupon PETLOVE5 at checkout to receive 5% discount.
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