An urn for your pet, in Upper Arlington
By our count, roughly 1,100 Upper Arlington families say goodbye to a dog or cat each year. This is a plain guide to the urn that comes next: size, material, cost and delivery.
- Sized from your pet's weight
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Upper Arlington, Ohio
Where families in Upper Arlington find their urns
Some families picture the Scioto or Griggs Reservoir, on the city's western edge, as a place for scattering. Those waters and the parkland around them belong to the City of Columbus, so ask its parks office first. A locket or tiny urn holding a little ash lets you keep your pet near while the rest goes back to the river you walked beside.
Many Upper Arlington houses have mantels, built-in bookshelves and formal living rooms, natural places for a handsome walnut or bronze urn with a framed portrait beside it. Some families here commission an oil painting or a small sculpture of their pet instead. For custom work that incorporates ashes, confirm with the artist how much is needed so the remainder stays together.
In a close community like Upper Arlington, a pet's death is often noticed by neighbors, church friends and the people at the feed store. Some families choose an urn with that in mind, something that can sit in a front room where visitors will see it, rather than tucked away. Others want a private keepsake that only they understand. Both are right, and neither needs to be expensive.
Upper Arlington's population is around 35,893, the 38th-largest of the 106 Ohio communities we cover. The nearest larger centre is Columbus, about 6 miles (10 km) away, which is where some providers serving Upper Arlington are based.
The closest communities we cover are Hilliard (5 miles), Columbus (6 miles, a larger centre) and Dublin (7 miles). Providers serving those towns often travel to Upper Arlington too, so it can be worth asking them for a quote.
Our estimate
13,000
How many dog- or cat-owning households Upper Arlington has (estimate)
How we calculated this
35,893 ÷ 2.5 = 14,357 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 13,000. Homes are counted once however many pets they keep.
Our estimate
1,100
Estimated dog and cat losses in Upper Arlington each year
How we calculated this
13,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 1,100 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.
If a number here surprises you, the primary material is American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry and Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science; we only apply it to this.
How Ohio thinks about cremation and urns
Cremation accounts for about 59.1%[5] of deaths in Ohio. Because it isn't yet everyone's default, local memorial shops may carry only a few pet designs. That's no reason to settle. Take the capacity you need and a photo of the spot where the urn will go, and you'll soon see whether the local range fits or whether to look further.
That Ohio rate is a human one, published by NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). We quote it for Upper Arlington only as a pointer to how families here already think about cremation.
Keeping an urn safe through Upper Arlington's seasons
Winter storms slow deliveries, especially in the weeks around the holidays. If you're ordering an engraved urn in January, add a margin of a week or more to the seller's estimate. When a glass or glazed ceramic urn arrives after a cold journey, leave the box indoors for an hour or two before unpacking so the piece warms up gradually; sudden temperature changes can crack glass.
Ice and snow in January, February, March and December can make the drive to a crematory or pet cemetery slow and unpredictable. If you're collecting the ashes, or dropping off an urn for the crematory to fill, pick a clear day and call ahead. Nothing is lost by waiting a week; the ashes are kept safely until you can get there.
How much to budget for an urn
Many Upper Arlington families don't buy an urn separately at all. A Virginia provider, for example, prices private cremation packages at $189–$300[6]: the lowest comes with a temporary container, the next with a wooden urn and the top with a wooden photo urn. That kind of package upgrade is often the cheapest way to get a decent urn. Compare it with the ranges below before you order elsewhere.
The full price table by product is on our Ohio page, and the services page explains what each option includes.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Before you scatter or bury in Ohio
Rules about pet ashes are about places, not containers. The urn you choose, whether it's engraved and how long you keep it are entirely your call. What follows for Ohio covers where scattering and burial are generally accepted, so you can plan any outdoor part of the memorial without worrying.
Not sure which office covers Upper Arlington? The Ohio local government directory is the official list.
Home burial and scattering are governed at the Ohio level first; our Ohio rules summary has the detail. Then check whether Upper Arlington or your HOA adds anything.
How to get from ashes to urn
- Tell your child the ashes are coming home and what they'll look like: a sealed bag in a plain box or tin.
- 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 to keep in their bedroom, with the main urn living somewhere the whole family uses.
- 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.
Keepsakes, displays and living memorials
Upper Arlington's big trees and long-established gardens suit a quiet, understated memorial: a flat stone beneath an old oak, a bed of ferns and hellebores, or a small bronze plaque fixed to a garden wall. Deep shade rules out many flowering trees, so if you plant with ashes, pick something that tolerates a canopy overhead, such as a native serviceberry at the woodland edge.
or see how other readers answered in our polls, go deeper with the guides or catch up on recent articles, Every option Upper Arlington families choose between is on the services page, try the free planning tools. If you live between Upper Arlington and Cleveland, Cincinnati, Akron and Columbus, either page applies. Every other community in Ohio, 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.
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.
How would you move the ashes from the temporary container into the urn?
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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
Where are the providers that serve Upper Arlington actually based?
Some are local, and some run from Columbus, about 6 miles away. That is normal for a town this size. What matters is the collection time they quote for Upper Arlington and whether the drive is priced into the total, so ask both up front.
Why does the Upper Arlington page quote a human cremation rate?
Because it is the best local signal we have. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) reports about 59.1%[5] of Ohio residents are cremated. There is no official pet equivalent, and inventing one would be worse than quoting a real, clearly labelled number.
Does the Upper Arlington climate change what I should do first?
Only the timing. In July, with highs near 86°F, cool the body and book collection the same day. In January, February, March 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.
How many pet owners live in Upper Arlington?
By our estimate, about 13,000 households in Upper Arlington have at least one dog or cat, and around 1,100 are lost each year. We calculate this from the city's population of about 35,893, the average household size and national ownership and lifespan figures, so treat it as a floor rather than an exact count.
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 bury my pet's ashes in winter in Upper Arlington?
If the ground is frozen, it's usually easier to wait. The ashes are completely safe indoors in the temporary container or the urn until spring. Many families find a spring burial, once the ground can be dug, a gentler moment than a cold day in January.
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] The NFDA projected Ohio's cremation rate at 59.1% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] Heavenly Paws Cremations in Chantilly, Virginia, sells private cremation packages at $189 (temporary container), $225 (wooden urn) and $300 (wooden photo urn), each including a paw print and fur clipping. Heavenly Paws Cremations – Packages, 2026.
- [7] 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.
Ask for urn and keepsake ideas by email
Tell us what you need and where you are. We'll reply by email with clear options and prices so you can decide in your own time.