Can I keep my pet’s ashes?

If you’ve chosen to have your pet cremated, you may want to consider what you can do with their ashes once you receive them back home. In this situation there may be a number of options which you can select from, to best suit you and your family.  

Choosing to have your pet cremated is now a popular choice in the UK, with the latest figures showing that around a quarter of owners pick this option when the time comes. If you have had your pet cremated it can be useful to think about how you’d like to deal with their ashes once they are back with you. 

For some people, scattering ashes is the preferred option. However, it’s perfectly possible to keep hold of your pet’s ashes in the home, so that you have the opportunity to have them near you all the time.  

With this in mind, there are various ways to memorialise your beloved pet, whilst keeping their ashes safe in the home. These include:  

• Breed urns – these take the form of figurine urns sculpted to look like particular breeds of dogs, as well as cats, horses, ponies or small pets such as rabbits.  

• Decorative urns – if you’d prefer a more classic urn to tuck on your mantlepiece or windowsill, which will look like an ornament to others, there are options including heart-shaped urns, metal urns and keepsake urns. 
• Photo frame urns – these are discreet pet ashes caskets, made of solid wood with a  

cleverly concealed casket housed discreetly behind a photo of your beloved companion. Different designs and sizes mean that you can add single or multiple photographs and they can be wall-mounted or free-standing.  

For some families, the best choice may be to keep the ashes outside or buried in the garden. But there can be some concern over what happens if you move to a new house in the future. Some urns are weather resistant, for use on the patio or in the garden, and have been specifically designed to be buried and unearthed if you relocate. In this situation an adjustable grave marker allows the urn to be easily located for removal to a different site or your new property.  

In time, there are some other options you might like to consider including:  

• Burying or scattering your pet’s ashes at a place of special meaning, or in a pet memorial garden. You can choose a sturdy urn or casket, or use a Scatter Tube to allow the ashes to nourish the earth. 
• Whilst you may wish to scatter the majority of the ashes, small portions can be stored in a memorial keepsake, allowing different family members to hold onto a memento of your beloved animal.  

Keeping your pet’s ashes is now a much more common choice for pet owners, and there are lots of options which you can choose from to best suit you and your family. 

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