Cremation

[CatLover49]

Whats yas thoughts on cremating your cat.or cats..My thought is I just dont know...I have mixed feelings..I ve always not like the thought of cremation..I guess its from the idea of the burning process...and also burial has always been my go to....Whether it be a cat or human..But I have recently been thinking about my kitty be 11yrs and getting older...And me not having him after he does pass one day...Ive had him since he was a kitten..and hes 11yrs be 12 yrs in July...So I just I guess im afraid of loosing my boy and him not being with me...And I know you can get containers to put the ashes in...to have at home...but im confused...What would you all do???

 

[dragonlady2]

I didn’t like the idea of cremation either. When one of our dogs died, we made the decision to cremate. We knew there was a good chance that we would be moving and we did not want to leave him behind. He has place in my craft room. I don’t regret that decision. We will be doing it for all of our pets.

 

[AbbysMom]

When my last cat died our home was for sale so we decided to cremate her so she could come with us.

 

[LTS3]

I had my first cat cremated. He lives in plain wooden box on my dresser now. I don't think cremation is weird.

 

[Winchester]

In our entertainment center in the living room is where all of our cremated babies are. We have quite a few of them. The only two babies (also cremated) who are outside are our Alaskan malemute (the greatest and most wonderful dog on the face of this earth ) and Pita, our kitten who passed away. Both dog and kitten are buried in the front flower bed because that's where Pita loved to play.

Anyway, all other cats are in the living room. When I pass, I also want to be cremated. And at that point, I'd like my ashes mixed in with the cremated cats and we'll all be sprinkled out in the back yard. If Rick were to pass first, the cats (except for Banshee) will be mixed with his cremains and sprinkled.

When The Beast dies, her ashes will be sprinkled atop Rick's father's grave. That seems only fitting as she was his dog.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that cremation is fine for us.

 

[Krienze]

Cremation here is really expensive. We thought about cremating CiCi, but it's 275 dollars. We decided to bury her instead, so that she can stay near us. I'm glad that was the choice we made, as 2 weeks later, our dog Jack needed to be put down. Him we DID have cremated. I'm not against cremation, burying him would have been almost impossible because he was a big dog and would have been harder to bring back home and we would have had to dug a 6 feet deep hole. Would have been hard.

Honestly, cremation used to scare me. I think when my nana passed and we had her cremated, I got over a lot of my fears. I don't think it's bad at all now, actually I feel a sense of comfort in having their ashes with me.

I was a mess all week until we got Jack's ashes back from the vet, having him home again was comforting.

 

[cassiopea]

No doubt it depends on finances and living circumstances overall (City/Apartment versus House/Country, budget, legal considerations etc). In any case:

My late dog, my parents two German Shepherds and my late cat Autumn are buried in a pretty location under a tree nearby the house. My dad's late horse is buried in the field. I live in a rural setting with plenty of land so it was easy and comfortable to bury them. There is the space and privacy. And of course, no expense. Didn't need a pet cemetery either. If I had to move I already made peace with the fact that I would leave them behind; I'm OK with it, I have many lovely pictures and videos of everyone so don't feel the need to hold on to their remains in such a way.

In the future however, depending on where I live, I will consider cremation. So my overall decision is based on what is best for that moment.

My close friend lost her kitty last year and had her cremated. The place where she got it done were very lovely and kind, and they put the ashes in this really cute and pretty little urn with a paw print stamp of her cat. She currently keeps it beside her bed. It's a nice reminder that with research and reviews, you can find some really wonderful pet-cremation companies so it reassured me and had me leaned towards the option someday. It worked for her!

Anyhoo I wouldn't worry about it too much, both cremation and burial are equally good options and not strange. When the time comes you will know the right thing to do! It will likely come naturally.


If the idea of fire still concerns, you can consider Alkaline Hydrolysis or Aquamation. It's a method that uses water instead of fire - the pet is submerged in a tank of water and the decomposition process is sped up through the solution in the tank. Instead of the ashes of tissue and bones, you get more of a sand-like carbon-speck substance. It's suppose to be a much greener option than cremation too. It also suppose to be less "violent" and depending on where you go cheaper too. I personally really like this idea. Now of course, it depends on how available this is to you locally. I know it varies between states for example in the U.S, some have it and others are still considering it officially or are in the process of accepting it.

There is even an option to donate your pets body to science; which means veterinary colleges where students use them to study anatomy. I would find this way too hard to do myself, letting my pets go like that, but to some folks it can be a nice way to assist those who are going to save animals in the future in a positive cause. And in particularly if finances are extra tight and difficult and you don't want your pet to simply be dumped somewhere.

Either way, again, if you do chose to cremate, definitely research the businesses first.

 

[CatLover49]

No doubt it depends on finances and living circumstances overall (City/Apartment versus House/Country, budget, legal considerations etc). In any case:

My late dog, my parents two German Shepherds and my late cat Autumn are buried in a pretty location under a tree nearby the house. My dad's late horse is buried in the field. I live in a rural setting with plenty of land so it was easy and comfortable to bury them. There is the space and privacy. And of course, no expense. Didn't need a pet cemetery either. If I had to move I already made peace with the fact that I would leave them behind; I'm OK with it, I have many lovely pictures and videos of everyone so don't feel the need to hold on to their remains in such a way.

In the future however, depending on where I live, I will consider cremation. So my overall decision is based on what is best for that moment.

My close friend lost her kitty last year and had her cremated. The place where she got it done were very lovely and kind, and they put the ashes in this really cute and pretty little urn with a paw print stamp of her cat. She currently keeps it beside her bed. It's a nice reminder that with research and reviews, you can find some really wonderful pet-cremation companies so it reassured me and had me leaned towards the option someday. It worked for her!

Anyhoo I wouldn't worry about it too much, both cremation and burial are equally good options and not strange. When the time comes you will know the right thing to do! It will likely come naturally.


If the idea of fire still concerns, you can consider Alkaline Hydrolysis or Aquamation. It's a method that uses water instead of fire - the pet is submerged in a tank of water and the decomposition process is sped up through the solution in the tank. Instead of the ashes of tissue and bones, you get more of a sand-like carbon-speck substance. It's suppose to be a much greener option than cremation too. It also suppose to be less "violent" and depending on where you go cheaper too. I personally really like this idea. Now of course, it depends on how available this is to you locally. I know it varies between states for example in the U.S, some have it and others are still considering it officially or are in the process of accepting it.

There is even an option to donate your pets body to science; which means veterinary colleges where students use them to study anatomy. I would find this way too hard to do myself, letting my pets go like that, but to some folks it can be a nice way to assist those who are going to save animals in the future in a positive cause. And in particularly if finances are extra tight and difficult and you don't want your pet to simply be dumped somewhere.

Either way, again, if you do chose to cremate, definitely research the businesses first.
QUOTE

No doubt it depends on finances and living circumstances overall (City/Apartment versus House/Country, budget, legal considerations etc). In any case:

My late dog, my parents two German Shepherds and my late cat Autumn are buried in a pretty location under a tree nearby the house. My dad's late horse is buried in the field. I live in a rural setting with plenty of land so it was easy and comfortable to bury them. There is the space and privacy. And of course, no expense. Didn't need a pet cemetery either. If I had to move I already made peace with the fact that I would leave them behind; I'm OK with it, I have many lovely pictures and videos of everyone so don't feel the need to hold on to their remains in such a way.

In the future however, depending on where I live, I will consider cremation. So my overall decision is based on what is best for that moment.

My close friend lost her kitty last year and had her cremated. The place where she got it done were very lovely and kind, and they put the ashes in this really cute and pretty little urn with a paw print stamp of her cat. She currently keeps it beside her bed. It's a nice reminder that with research and reviews, you can find some really wonderful pet-cremation companies so it reassured me and had me leaned towards the option someday. It worked for her!

Anyhoo I wouldn't worry about it too much, both cremation and burial are equally good options and not strange. When the time comes you will know the right thing to do! It will likely come naturally.


If the idea of fire still concerns, you can consider Alkaline Hydrolysis or Aquamation. It's a method that uses water instead of fire - the pet is submerged in a tank of water and the decomposition process is sped up through the solution in the tank. Instead of the ashes of tissue and bones, you get more of a sand-like carbon-speck substance. It's suppose to be a much greener option than cremation too. It also suppose to be less "violent" and depending on where you go cheaper too. I personally really like this idea. Now of course, it depends on how available this is to you locally. I know it varies between states for example in the U.S, some have it and others are still considering it officially or are in the process of accepting it.

There is even an option to donate your pets body to science; which means veterinary colleges where students use them to study anatomy. I would find this way too hard to do myself, letting my pets go like that, but to some folks it can be a nice way to assist those who are going to save animals in the future in a positive cause. And in particularly if finances are extra tight and difficult and you don't want your pet to simply be dumped somewhere.

Either way, again, if you do chose to cremate, definitely research the businesses first.

Im considering cremation ....but I would never donate his body to science...I want my boy to Rip when time comes...But thank you for the information...

 

[lorie d.]

I have had 3 cats cremated, the last one was Sweetie whose picture is in my avatar. The place where Sweetie's cremation was done sent his ashes back in a very nice wooden urn. They also included a card that had the Rainbow Bridge poem on one side and a picture of an owner and dog on the other, along with the words "unconditional trust deserves uncompromised care". I think they understand how hard it is to lose a pet.

 

[susanm9006]

I have had all of my cats except one cremated but I have never kept the ashes. I just don’t feel that I would get any comfort from them. The one cat that wasn’t cremated but buried in my yard.

 

[Talien]

All of my pets have been cremated, and I still have their ashes.

Taxidermy is also an option. I don't think it's something I would want personally, but there are people who do it.

 

[muffy]

I have had all of my cats except one cremated but I have never kept the ashes. I just don’t feel that I would get any comfort from them. The one cat that wasn’t cremated but buried in my yard.

I had all of my cats cremated and I also did not save the ashes because I would not get any comfort from them. We are not allowed to bury pets in our yards here. I also plan to be cremated.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

I had Noodles cremated just over a month ago and I'm glad I did. She is sitting in a curio cabinet my Grandpa made and gave to me when he moved into an assisted living place. All my cats prior to this have been buried or we've had to let the vet handle their remains because of where we lived. My soul-kitty is buried at my mother's house and i'm sad at the thought of them leaving her (and another kitty) behind when they eventually move to a smaller place like they keep talking about. We don't know that we will stay in our current house forever either. So we had Noodles cremated. I'm glad she is nearby and will come with us. It wasn't TOO expensive to do either.

 

[glittercat]

Out of the four cats I've lost, three were put to sleep and taken away by the vet to be cremated. I don't recall ever having the option of being given the ashes back.

Blade was the only one who passed at home during the day when we were at work. I took his poor body to the vet and again they took him away but no option to have the ashes back.

I'm glad that they weren't buried where I used to live, as my ex sold the house about 18 months after we split up.

 

[verna davies]

I have had three cats cremated, I couldnt stand the thought of burying them. For me, it gave me a sense of comfort to have their ashes back.

 

[jefferd18]

The only cat whom I have not cremated is Jeff. She is still over in my vet's freezer because I am having such a hard time saying good-bye to her. Please don't judge me for I feel bad enough. Trust me, I will do the right thing.

As far as your question goes- I have always preferred cremation because I can have my beloved animal companions close by, in the very house in which they were so loved.

 

[Jem]

I have 4 cats cremated. They have their own area in one of my living room's shelving units along with paw prints and photos.
I don't know if this house we are in will be the one we stay in, so to bury them was a no no, I couldn't bare the thought of leaving them behind. And to allow the vet to dispose of them made my heart hurt too much. So we opted for cremation, and to keep the ashes. It's expensive here but there wasn't any other choice for us. Besides, the price for allowing the vet to dispose of them is not exactly cheap either.

 

[RainBoots]

We just went through a sudden loss and had to make a fast choice about what we wanted to do. Despite the cost - it was near to $300 - we decided to have the hospital send him to be cremated. The business who cremated Yoda was rude, unprofessional, and didn't seem to care at all about their work. It was the worst thing to have to deal with while still in shock from the unexpected loss.

I commend you for thinking about this before you need it. Research your options and local services - after all, you don't have to decide right now, but having a list of well rated places to turn to will make things so much easier.

Urns:
We purchased our urns from Amazon for $40/ea, because our cats were large. It is a beautiful wood-looking box with a place in the front to put a photo. Although we didn't cremate our first cat (we simply couldn't afford it), we plan to put his favorite toy in the box and set him up next to his brother.

Emotional Impact:
I was really surprised by how comforted I was to have our baby boy returned and bring his ashes home. I know we will not stay in this home forever, so it is very nice to know that our cats will come with us when we do move.

 

[misty8723]

Our three cats who passed were all cremated and we have their ashes in urns on the mantle. We even attended a "ceremony" with one of them. Visitation and we were in the back when they actually cremated her. They advised us not to watch, but there's no way I could have watched. Then we watched as they poured her ashes into the urn we picked out and we drove home with me holding her.

 

[Tik cat's mum]

All my cat's before Tik were buried unfortunately I have no garden now we're I live, So Tik was cremated I didn't bring his ashes home because I didn't need them to remember him. I knew when I buried my other pets I wouldn't be in that house forever. I think it is personal and I can see why people are torn on this decision.