Does anyone know how much it costs to get your dog cremated?

Question

I was just curious, because I recently found out that when you leave the dog with the vet to "take care of the body," it ends up in the dump. I don't like the thought of my dog ending up there.

Sorry, I should clarify, I did not lose my dog. I just heard about this dump thing and I was curious about cost as one day I will cremate my dog. For now (and hopefully a long time) she is still alive and kicking!

Answer 1

Average Prices for Services

Cremation Services
Private pet cremation, your dog, and only your dog, can cost between $150 and $350, dependant upon the size of your dog.
Individual Cremation, means that your dog will share his space with others, but they will be separated, and you are still assured of receiving your dog's remains after. This generally costs around $75 to $200.


Mass cremation is the cheapest option, but you will not be able to have your dog's ashes returned to you. This option is available for $30 to $100, and not recommended if you wish keep hold of your pets cremains, or spread them.

Answer 2

Ask your vet what they do with the bodies. The places I've worked at had companies that picked up the bodies. If burial was requested they got placed into a mass grave. They also offered mass cremation where owners did not get ashes back or individual cremation with ashes returned. I guess price all depends on the clinic and location. Most ofen charge by weight of the animal. I have worked for different practioners in the North east and have seen the price for a cat be anywhere from 50-150 dollars.
PS-some places do send animals out to be rendered, which isn't a plesant though as a beloved pets final resting area.

Answer 3

Creamation costs are somewhere between $25 and $50. I had a kitty cremated about two years ago and it cost me $35. I could get the remains or have her buried in a grave for $15 more, which I did.

Actually, your veterinarian works with several disposal options. I doubt seriously that a veterinarian sends deceased animals to the dump. I don't believe he is allowed to do that. He is well aware of the health issues involved.

He can have the local rendering company come pick up the deceased animals. If a rendering company disposes of the deceased, the dead animal is chopped up and becomes fertilizer or is ground up to become bone meal for pet foods.

Sometimes the vet keeps deceased animals in a freezer until it's full, then pays the local pet cemetary to take the animals, cremate them and put them all in a common grave. I think this is one of the most common methods of disposal because of all the health issues that revolve around deceased animals.

Sorry to sound so morbid, but I used to work in a veterinary clinic and I did observe the veterinarian utilize both methods I've cited.

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Answer 4

If you want your dog cremated and you want to keep the ashes it costs between $100 and $200 depending on the urn you pick for it. If you don't want to keep the ashes then the vets do just throw the bodies away. If you take it to the humane society they either cremate it seperately for you or they do a mass cremation in which they just wait until there's a buildup of bodies then they just cremate them all at once. It's a horrible decision to have to make. (not that those prices are in canadian dollars so it would be cheaper if you live in the states)

Answer 5

Firstly no animals put to sleep at a veterinary surgery will end up at a 'dump' - any animals not taken by their owners are kept in cold storage and collected by a company qualified to arrange disposal of the bodies.
Cremation depends largely on the size of the dog and the type of container the ashes are returned to you in (a casket is usually cheaper than an urn).
When I worked as a veterinary nurse prices started at around £30-£40 for smaller dogs going up to around £150 I believe. When my Springer Spaniel was put to sleep it cost around £80 to have his ashes returned in a casket.

Answer 6

About $30-$50.

Answer 7

I had to put my dog to sleep a couple years ago and I heard the same thing about the dump--it was on all the local news stations here. I called different vets until I found one who was honest with me. Most would say they "took care of it humanely" and when I asked about the dump, the just repeated the above phrase. Sure, the vet himself doesn't dump it, but what does the company they hire do with it?? One of the newscasts had video of animals being disposed of at the city dump. I called PetsMart's veterinarian and they contracted with an animal cremation service. I paid an extra $25 to have my dog cremated.

Answer 8

I had 2 cats cremated. One was $110, the other $115. I don't know if it had something to do with the weight.

Our dog (boxer, 70lbs) was about $220 thru the vet.

My cats I had done at a pet cemetary, which was more expesive.....but I got them back in 3 hours. The dog (which was done at the vet) was less.......but I had to wait a week.

You can also call local "people" cemetaries and ask if they offer pet cremation. Most do.......but you might have to wait 2 weeks to get them back.

Answer 9

I had this done approx. 15 years ago, and I think it cost me something like $50. The ashes were returned in a cardboard box with a wood pattern on it, about the size of children's shoe box (I'm sure I could have paid for something better, but didn't).

If you do have this done, take my advice and bury the ashes when you get them. I can't tell you how many times we've literally "forgot" where the box containing this dog's ashes were.
It's not exactly something you keep on display (not in the type of box I got anyway). We've even been evacuated due to hurricanes and forest fires, and always end up slapping our foreheads later for forgetting about it.

Sorry to hear about your dog. I always cry a river of tears when I lose one.

Edited to add: Btw, it may depend on the dog's size, but I have requested to be able to pick a dog up for burial... this was with a small daschund, and his body was in a small box when I picked him up. Again, it may depend on the size, but it's worth asking about if you would like to consider that option.

Answer 10

It depends on the weight of the dog, the company's particular rates and the urn that the remains are placed in. I had a 40lb dog cremated last year and it cost $130, not including the euthanasia. I had the cheapest box for her ashes, but it is beautiful.