If you’re reading this article, you’re probably looking for the best way to say goodbye to your beloved pet, and cremation sounds like the way to go. Cremation is what many view as the most respectful and honorable way to allow your pet to finish its life. If this is the direction you’d like to go, make sure you know what it will cost you.
Cremating a dog generally costs between $100 and $200 US dollars. Private cremations can be more expensive, with standard cremations on the lower end. Likewise, the cremation of larger dogs costs more than the cremation of smaller dogs.
As stated above, there are quite a few different factors that can cause the cost of cremation to fluctuate. These factors include the dog’s size including weight and/or height, sometimes age, and privacy of the cremation service. Let’s dive into how much your dog’s cremation will cost you, and how you can maximize the money you save.
Different Cremation Privacy Levels Will Cost You
Your dog’s cremation service will realistically cost you somewhere between one hundred and two hundred US dollars. Of course, like with all financial investments, there will be some that can cost as little as sixty US dollars or some that might cost two hundred fifty US dollars. Let’s take a look at the factors that will increase or decrease the cost of your dog’s cremation service. [Source]
How the Cremation’s Privacy Level Affects the overall Cost
There are two categories for dog cremations or just pet cremations in general. These are private cremations and non-private cremations. The privacy level of your dog’s cremation service will either increase or decrease the overall cremation service’s cost to you.
Different Types of Cremation Services
A private cremation means that the only dog in the cremation chamber will be your dog. However, Non-private cremations will have many dogs in the chamber that need to be cremated at once. The detriment to this type of cremation, and the reason why many dog owners prefer private cremations, is that your pet’s ashes have a small chance of getting mixed with the ashes of other dogs in the same cremation chamber being cremated at the same time. [Source]
How Much Money is My Dog’s Cremation Service Going to Cost Me?
Since many dog owners want their dog’s ashes preserved and kept for emotional, ethical, or attachment reasons, the last thing most want is for their dog’s ashes to be mixed with another dog’s.
This is considered disrespectful and careless by many dog owners, which is why private cremations are an option in the first place. [Source]
Standard Cremation Service Price Range
If you are not overly concerned with your dog’s ashes mixing with another, a non-private, or standard cremation, could be the option for you, since it’s cheaper and one way you can save on the cremation process for your dog.
Standard cremation services are usually around the fifty to seventy-five US dollar range for smaller dogs or one hundred to one hundred fifty US dollars for larger dogs. Of course, these ranges can fluctuate, it just depends on where you live and which vet you schedule the cremation service with.
Private Cremation Service Price Range
Private cremations are more expensive for obvious reasons. A private cremation for a small dog is around one hundred to one hundred fifty US dollars, while a private cremation for a larger dog is going to be more like two hundred to two hundred fifty US dollars. So, the private cremation can add an extra one hundred US dollars to the overall price, but many dog and pet owners find this to be well worth it to honor and say goodbye to their beloved friend.
Best Ways to Save on Your Dog’s Cremation Service
I’m sure you’ll miss your pet and would like to honor them. This is a noble thing, but that does not mean that you have to drain your wallet in order to do so. Cremating a dog in and of itself is an honorable service, and you are creating a tribute to your dog’s life and personality no matter how much it costs.
Dogs are not shallow like humans; your dog was likely happy just being around you every day, they wouldn’t care how much you spent on their cremation service.
How Can You Spend Less for Your Dog’s Cremation?
As discussed before, the best and easiest way to save on your dog’s cremation service is through the privacy level. If you are looking to honor your dog by investing in a cremation service, there is absolutely nothing wrong with doing a cremation that is not a private session.
You provided for and took care of your dog for the entire duration of his or her life, and it is okay for you to not break your pocketbook over extra fees for their cremation. [Source]
Other than the privacy level, you can’t really do anything about your pet’s weight. If your pet is right on the border for the weight groups with different cremation costs, you can try shaving them or some other method, to try and pay less for the price of a smaller dog cremation service.
Why Would I Choose to Cremate My Dog Instead of Burying it?
The very real appeal of cremating one’s dog is that it lets them last forever. If you cremate your dog, its ashes will remain with you for the rest of your life, and you can keep your dog close to you. Some people get creative and even encase their dog’s ashes in jewelry, an urn, or some other memento to remember your adored pet.
The Ethics of Cremating a Dog After Death
The reason that cremation is such a big deal for pet owners, and particularly dog owners, is that it honors the pet and their life. Additionally, it treats the pet with a similar amount of respect and love shown to real people who pass away. If one is to cremate their dog that passed away after thirteen years in their family, they are showing similar respect to the remaining ashes of their deceased grandma. Of course, pets are not people, but they sure can feel like they are sometimes. [Source]
