Choosing a pet urn in Reno
By our estimate, about 105,000 households in Reno share their home with a dog or cat, and roughly 8,700 of those pets die each year. Many of their ashes come home needing an urn. Here's how to choose one well.
- Sized from your pet's weight
- Local crematory urns vs online makers
- No obligation, we reply by email
Reno, Nevada
How Reno families shop for a pet urn
Many Reno families love the mountains and the lake, and some want part of a pet's ashes to stay close to home while the rest is scattered somewhere wild. Asking for the ashes to be divided into a main urn and smaller keepsakes, or a pendant or ring, lets you do both. A paw print taken before cremation is another lasting keepsake.
The dry climate around Reno makes planting a living memorial a little harder than in wetter places. If you'd like a tree or shrub, choose a drought-tolerant native, plant in spring or fall, and water deeply through its first summers. A bio urn can work well in a large pot or raised bed where you can control the soil and watering.
A local woodworker in the Reno area can do something no online shop can: make an urn from wood that means something to you, such as a branch from the tree your dog lay under or boards from an old porch. Ask how the wood will be dried first, since green timber can crack as it seasons indoors. The piece will take longer, but it's often the urn families are most glad they waited for.
With roughly 283,621 residents, Reno is the 4th-largest of the 11 Nevada communities we cover.
For a second opinion on price, Sparks (6 miles), Incline Village (21 miles) and Carson City (26 miles) are close enough that their providers cover Reno routinely. Two written quotes tell you more than any price list.
Our estimate
105,000
How many dog- or cat-owning households Reno has (estimate)
How we calculated this
283,621 ÷ 2.5 = 113,448 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 105,000. Homes are counted once however many pets they keep.
Our estimate
8,700
dog and cat deaths per year in Reno, our estimate
How we calculated this
105,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 8,700 a year. The real figure is unlikely to be lower.
53%[1]
53% of US households own a dog, which is about 71 million households.
12.69 years[2]
US dogs have an average life expectancy at birth of 12.69 years.
39%[3]
39% of US households own a cat, which is about 53 million households.
11.18 years[4]
US cats seen at Banfield hospitals have an average life expectancy at birth of 11.18 years.
The numbers above come from Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science and American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry, if you'd like to read the original sources.
Keeping ashes at home: the local attitude
Cremation is now the mainstream choice in Nevada, where about 80.7%[5] of people are cremated. In places like this, the urn has become the main memorial for many families, taking the place a headstone once held. That's worth remembering when you choose one for a pet: it may be on a shelf for twenty years, so pick something you'll still like, rather than something that only suits this week.
Source for the Nevada number: Direct Cremate (citing CANA) (2024). Nobody publishes a pet cremation rate for Reno, so the human figure is the best local signal available.
Indoor and outdoor urns in Reno's climate
Because Reno swings from July heat to winter frost, a planted memorial needs a little planning. Put a biodegradable urn and a young tree in the ground in spring or early autumn, water it through its first summer and mulch it before December. A tree that survives its first year usually settles in, and it will mark the spot for decades.
Outdoor memorials in Reno have to survive July heat and the frosts of December. If you'd like the ashes in the garden, many families bury them in a simple biodegradable urn and put a granite or stone marker above, rather than leaving a decorative urn outside. The marker handles the weather, and the ashes are safely underground whatever the season.
How much to budget for an urn
Keepsakes are cheaper than you might think, and the sets are cheaper still. Keepsake or mini pet urns typically cost $15–$60[6] (per one large retailer); one widely cited figure puts a single keepsake at about $28 and a set of six at about $115[7]. Watch out for tiny premium pieces, though: at one crematory, a 1 oz heart keepsake cost about a third more than its full-size wooden urn[8].
Rather than repeat the price table on every city page, we keep one for Nevada: Nevada costs. What each service includes is on the services page.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Rules worth knowing before you scatter or bury
Pet ashes are sterile, mineral remains, so the rules around them are lighter than for burying a body. Still, a few things are worth checking before you scatter or bury: who owns the land, whether a park or beach has its own policy and, if you'll bury an urn, whether it's biodegradable. Here's what applies in Nevada.
Reno's own guidance is published by Washoe County Regional Animal Services; it covers public collection, which is separate from arranging a private cremation. To find your county or city office in Nevada, start with the official Nevada local government directory.
For Nevada's rules on burying a pet at home or scattering ashes, see the Nevada guide. Local rules in Reno can be stricter than the state's, especially in homeowners' associations and rentals.
How to get from ashes to urn
- Tell your child the ashes are coming home, describing them beforehand: a closed bag inside an ordinary tin or box.
- Let them help choose, offering a shortlist of two or three that you've already vetted for capacity and cost.
- Offer a small keepsake of their own for their room, while the main urn stays in a shared space.
- Invite them to add something: a drawing or a short note can be tucked under the base.
- Pick a lid that screws or locks shut, above all where a young child could reach the urn.
- Mark the day the urn arrives with a moment together, such as lighting a candle or telling a favorite story.
Ways to remember your pet at home
Outdoor memorials in Reno face intense high-desert sun, big temperature swings and winter freezes. Granite, bronze and stainless steel last well, while painted wood and printed photos fade and cheap resin cracks. Set a garden stone on a gravel base so it drains, and consider a spot with some afternoon shade to slow weathering over the years. Indoor pieces avoid the problem entirely.
For a plain comparison of the choices, open services, the guides answer the longer questions and the blog the newer ones, use the free tools before you ring anyone, or compare your instinct with the poll results. If you live between Reno and North Las Vegas, Carson City, Henderson and Summerlin, either page applies. Every other community in Nevada, and all of the United States, is listed too.
Reader polls
What would you choose?
Vote anonymously and see how other readers answered. The results are live counts from people who visit this site, so they show real opinions, not a scientific sample.
Will your pet's ashes stay together or be shared?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If you were choosing your pet's urn today, which material would you pick?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If you had to decide today, which aftercare would you choose for your pet?
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Free tools to help you plan
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Urn size calculator
Find the urn volume you need from your pet's weight, plus keepsake and sharing options.
Ashes sharing planner
Split ashes fairly between family members, keepsake urns and jewelry.
Questions people ask
Does the Reno climate change what I should do first?
Only the timing. In July, with highs near 94°F, cool the body and book collection the same day. In January, February, November and December, when lows sit below freezing, a home burial may have to wait for a thaw, so cremation with ashes returned keeps your options open.
Is cremation common in Nevada?
For people, yes: about 80.7%[5] of Nevada deaths end in cremation, according to Direct Cremate (citing CANA) (2024). Nobody publishes the same figure for pets, but in our experience pet choices in Reno follow the human pattern closely, so cremation is the default most families here start from.
Which nearby towns can I compare with Reno?
The closest communities we cover are Sparks (about 6 miles), Incline Village (about 21 miles) and Carson City (about 26 miles). Providers based in those places often serve Reno too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
Is Reno big enough to have several pet aftercare providers?
Probably, on the numbers. By our estimate about 105,000 Reno households keep a dog or cat and around 8,700 lose one each year, which is enough steady demand to support more than one provider. We derive that from population (about 283,621), household size and national ownership and lifespan figures.
How can I share my pet's ashes with family in other cities?
Most families set aside small shares before filling the main urn, then give each person a matching keepsake urn. Handing keepsakes over in person is simplest. The ashes sharing planner shows how much each share can hold, and our guide to primary urns versus keepsakes helps you decide which vessel does which job.
Can I scatter my pet's ashes in a park near Reno?
Often you can, but parks set their own rules, and some ask you to request permission first. Choose a quiet spot away from paths, playgrounds and water intakes, scatter close to the ground and downwind, and leave nothing behind. If you're unsure, check with the parks department or scatter on private land with the owner's agreement.
Sources and our estimates
- [1] 53% of US households own a dog, which is about 71 million households. American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry, 2025.
- [2] US dogs have an average life expectancy at birth of 12.69 years. Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science - Banfield Pet Hospital life expectancy tables (13.3 million dogs, 2.4 million cats, 2013-2019), 2023.
- [3] 39% of US households own a cat, which is about 53 million households. American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry, 2025.
- [4] US cats seen at Banfield hospitals have an average life expectancy at birth of 11.18 years. Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science - Banfield Pet Hospital life expectancy tables (13.3 million dogs, 2.4 million cats, 2013-2019), 2023.
- [5] Nevada had a 80.7% cremation rate in 2024, among the highest in the US. Direct Cremate (citing CANA), 2024.
- [6] Keepsake or mini pet urns cost about $15–$60, versus $25–$100 for small and $40–$200 for medium urns (Memorials.com). Memorials.com – Pet Urn Cost Guide, 2025.
- [7] A single keepsake urn costs around $28 and a set of six around $115, per U.S. Funerals Online figures cited by Funeral.com. Funeral.com – How Much Do Cremation Urns Cost in 2025, 2025.
- [8] A 1 oz keepsake urn can cost about a third more than a full-size wooden urn at the same crematory. Our estimate: CA$106 heart keepsake / CA$79 solid wood urn. How we calculate.
- [9] Marble pet urns cost about 3 times ceramic ones, consistently across a price guide and a crematory price list. Our estimate: Memorials.com midpoints marble $190 / ceramic $60 = 3.2×; Final Gift marble $260 / ceramic figurine $90 = 2.9×. How we calculate.
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