Steps to Take When a Pet Passes Away at Home

When a pet dies at home, you have three main duties: deal with the body, involve those who need to be involved, and handle your grief. Almost everything you do will fall into one of these categories.

This article breaks down the exact steps you need to follow to respectfully handle your pet’s body, involve other pets and family members, and deal with your grief.

What To Do When A Pet Dies At Home

The most important things you’ll need to do are:

• Confirm whether your pet has really passed away
• Move their body to a cooler place
• Contact your vet for further assistance.

Vet involvement can go from confirming that your pet is deceased and handling their cremation to literally guiding you step by step from the moment you suspect that your pet has died.

You get to decide how much vet support is necessary.

Check Your Pet’s Status

People often involve their vets because they need to confirm whether their pet is actually deceased. And vets also offer super cheap cremation, but that’s for later. If you are sure that your pet has passed, then you do not need the vet at this stage.

If your pet is a mammal, like a dog or a cat, you can use your hand to check for breath and pulse. Also, remember that you can look for specific signs of death for pretty much any category of pets. 

Since cats and dogs make up a majority of the world’s pet population, I’ll go over the signs of death in these two species.

• Pay attention to the animal’s belly. Is it moving? If the cat or dog has passed, her belly will not move due to a lack of breathing.
• Hold a mirror up to your pet’s nose. Does it fog up? If it doesn’t fog up, then your fur baby isn’t breathing and is likely deceased.
• Check if your pet’s eyes are open or closed. When a cat or dog dies, her eyes open, and her pupils soften. If you have a glove, put it on and try to touch her open eye. If there is no movement, your cat has passed away.

Handling The Body

At this stage, you can get a family member involved, especially if you have a large pet. You need to move your pet’s body to a place with lower sunlight exposure. Any place in the house that’s cooler.

Place a plastic sheet (or anything water-resistant) under your pet’s head and back. Basically, the orifices need to be over something that can handle fluids.

Those are the material specifics of handling the body. There are also emotional specifics. If you have other pets, let them sniff the body. This will help them understand and grieve. Read my post on whether a pet knows if another pet dies for more information.

Let other family members know as well, except for kids too young to cope with the information. In fact, you need to make sure that little kids do not witness the body. And if they do, make sure they leave before they can come to a dark conclusion.

Once the body is in a cool place and everyone who should know and see has done so, it is time to think about burial or cremation. 

A pet’s death is tricky. Because you lose a family member that, to the rest of the world, is just an animal. That’s why some people don’t know what to say to you when your fur baby has passed.

In some places, you can’t bury animals yourself. In others, you can bury them in your backyard. Then, there are cities where there are dedicated pet cemeteries.

Understanding your local regulations around pet burial can be helpful. But common options are as follows.

• Burial: Pet Cemetery Or Backyard
• Cremation: Mass cremation or individual cremation.

To make this decision, consider the pros and cons of each option.

The next stage depends on the option you have chosen. Follow the steps that are valid for your situation.

Steps For Pet Burial

• Decide between a pet cemetery or your own property – If you choose the latter, make sure to check your local regulations to see if it’s okay to bury pets in your backyard.
• Hire a contractor or get a family member to help – You’ll need at least one pair of hands besides your own if you’re burying a large pet.
• Dig a grave 3 to 4 times as deep as your pet’s height – This really depends on your pet’s size. Generally, deeper graves are better.
• Place your pet inside – Make sure everyone who needs to be there is there to witness this.
• Fill the grave – This is the final step.

Steps For Pet Cremation 

• Choose between mass cremation or individual cremation – Mass Cremation is the most common option, while individual cremation is the one that lets you hold onto your pet’s ashes.
• For mass cremation, take the body to your local vet – Vets charge $30 to $75 for mass cremation. 
• For individual cremation, look up pet cremation services – You are more likely to find one in a city closest to you.
• If you want to keep the ashes, take a container with you – Crematoriums may try to upsell you on an urn. You can save $50 to $100 by taking a portable container with you.
• Place the ashes in an urn – later, when you have time, you can order an urn online.

Why not consider a unique and beautiful way to keep their memory alive with a personalized 3D Crystal Urn or 3D Photo Candle from Teddy & Finn? Like a window to heaven, the elegant keepsake urn comes with 2 tea light candles and cylindrical self-adhesive cover tops, offering a serene way to honor your beloved pet.

To use as an urn, simply remove the tea light candles, place the ashes in the pre-drilled holes on top, and cover with the provided seals, preserving your fur babies memory with dignity and grace.

You can order your custom crystal urn or candle online, and let their memory shine in a truly special way.

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Life Without Your Pet

While burying/cremating your pet is the final step, your journey continues. So make sure to seek support, organize and honor your pet’s memories, and give yourself time to grieve.

When you are ready, you will embrace life with enthusiasm. But don’t force yourself to move on quicker than is natural for you as losing a pet is painful.

Final Thoughts

If you suspect that your pet has passed away, check their pulse and look for signs of breathing. Once you’re sure that they’re deceased, move their body to a cool place and call your vet.

Also, let other family members know. If you have another pet, let them sniff the body so they, too, can begin to process the situation. Finally, take your pet to the vet for cremation or to a pet cemetery for burial.