Thinking about preserving your pet in Lakewood?
Lakewood has an estimated 28,500 dog- or cat-owning households, by our count. Very few local vets handle a preservation request often, so this page walks you through the freezing, shipping and waiting yourself.
- Real published prices, never guesses
- Care tips for a preserved pet at home
- Gentler options if full preservation isn't right
Lakewood, California
Getting your pet frozen and to a specialist from Lakewood
Lakewood families span generations, and a pet's death may be a child's first experience of loss. Use plain words, avoid saying the pet went to sleep, and let children help choose a keepsake or draw a picture. Older family members sometimes grieve more quietly; checking in with them a week or two later is often appreciated more than they will say.
In a close-knit suburb like Lakewood, neighbors often knew your pet by name, and it can be surprisingly hard to answer their kind questions. It is fine to keep things brief, or to let a family member share the news. A small gathering in the backyard, a few words and a favorite photo, is enough of a farewell for many households here.
Small towns like Lakewood often have a taxidermist who does deer and turkeys each season. They may be willing to freeze your pet for you, or to point you to someone who does pets, and that can be a real help. Just remember that mounting a buck and recreating your cat's face are different skills, so look at their pet work before you commit.
About 78,010 people live in Lakewood, which makes it the 103rd-largest of the 307 California communities we cover. Some of the providers who serve Lakewood are based about 7 miles away in Long Beach, the nearest larger centre, so collection times reflect that drive.
Nearby, we also have local pages for Bellflower (3 miles), Cerritos (3 miles) and Paramount (4 miles), which can help if your vet or the provider you prefer is based there.
Our estimate
28,500
How many dog- or cat-owning households Lakewood has (estimate)
How we calculated this
78,010 ÷ 2.5 = 31,204 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 28,500. A household with several pets counts once.
Our estimate
2,400
dog and cat deaths per year in Lakewood, our estimate
How we calculated this
28,500 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 2,400 a year. Treat it as a minimum.
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 American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry and Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science, if you'd like to read the original sources.
Why preservation means speaking up early in California
Where cremation is as common as it is in California, at about 70.5%[5], a preservation request can surprise the clinic desk. Staff may gently check that you understand the cost and the wait. That's care, not judgment. Give a short, firm answer, such as asking for your pet to be frozen for a preservation specialist, and ask them to write it on the file so the next shift doesn't route your pet to the crematory out of habit.
The California percentage above is from NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) and refers to human funerals. Treat it as context for Lakewood, not as a count of pets.
Seasons, shipping and humidity in Lakewood
Gentle weather in Lakewood makes it easy to mark the waiting months outdoors. Some families plant a shrub or a pot of flowers on the day their pet leaves for the studio, so the preserved pet comes home around the time it blooms. It's a small ritual, but it gives a long wait a shape.
Lakewood can be damp around February without ever feeling muggy. Freeze-dried pets are most at risk where damp air sits still, in closed rooms and cupboards. If you need to store the piece for a while, during a move for example, wrap it loosely in acid-free tissue in a box with silica gel packets, never in sealed plastic that traps moisture.
Preservation prices beside other aftercare
Pet insurance rarely helps here. Standard policies generally don't cover aftercare, and end-of-life add-ons have low ceilings; one wellness add-on could reimburse up to $650[6] toward cremation, burial and keepsakes. Budget from savings, try our preservation cost estimator and ask whether the practitioner takes a deposit up front with the balance due before return shipping.
Rather than repeat the price table on every city page, we keep one for California: California costs. What each service includes is on the services page.
Free tool
Freeze-dry & taxidermy cost estimator
Estimate cost and waiting time for freeze-drying or taxidermy by size and pose.
Permits, shipping and burial rules in California
Two kinds of rules can apply to a preserved pet. Wildlife rules come first: if your pet is a native wild bird, turtle, snake or other protected species, possessing or preserving them may need paperwork, even if you kept them legally for years. Then there are the ordinary aftercare rules on burial at home and scattering ashes, for any part of your pet you don't keep.
California keeps an official directory of local governments; use it to reach the county or city office that covers Lakewood.
We keep California's burial and scattering rules in one place: the California rules summary. Before a home burial in Lakewood, also ask the city whether local ordinances add anything.
What to do first if you might preserve your pet
- Tell your vet or clinic straight away that you're considering preservation, so your pet isn't sent for cremation with the day's collection.
- Lay your pet in a relaxed position while they're still limp: resting on one side with the legs tucked softly. Leave the coat unbrushed and unwashed.
- Double-bag them using two thick plastic bags, squeezing the air from each one before you close it.
- Put them in the coldest freezer available inside a few hours; a refrigerator isn't cold enough. Once they're in, resist the urge to open the bags and check.
- Take photos you already have and gather more: their face from several angles, how their ears sat, any markings. The practitioner will need them.
- Choose a practitioner by their pet work, then make sure cost, deposit, return date and how they'll travel are written down before your pet leaves the house.
Remembering your pet while you wait
Grief does not follow a timetable, and in a busy part of Los Angeles County it can feel like there is no pause to take. If you are still struggling weeks later, pet-loss support groups and phone lines around the region are there for exactly that. Talking with someone who understands is not an overreaction; it is a normal part of losing a companion.
For a plain comparison of the choices, open services, go deeper with the guides or catch up on recent articles, the planning tools turn your pet's details into figures, or compare your instinct with the poll results. If you live between Lakewood and Sacramento, Fresno, Los Angeles and San Diego, either page applies. Every other community in California, 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.
Where would a preserved pet live in your home?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If you were preserving your pet, which route would you lean toward?
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If you had to decide today, which aftercare would you choose for your pet?
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Questions people ask
Which nearby towns can I compare with Lakewood?
The closest communities we cover are Bellflower (about 3 miles), Cerritos (about 3 miles) and Paramount (about 4 miles). Providers based in those places often serve Lakewood too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
Roughly how many pets die in Lakewood each year?
Our estimate is around 2,400. It comes from Lakewood's population (about 78,010), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 28,500 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
Where are the providers that serve Lakewood actually based?
Some are local, and some run from Long Beach, about 7 miles away. That is normal for a town this size. What matters is the collection time they quote for Lakewood and whether the drive is priced into the total, so ask both up front.
How do California attitudes to cremation compare?
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) puts the California human cremation rate at about 70.5%[5]. We show it on the Lakewood page because pet aftercare choices tend to track it: where cremation is normal for people, communal and private pet cremation are both easy to find.
Can my rabbit be preserved if rabbit hemorrhagic disease is a concern?
Ask your vet first. The USDA advises rabbit owners not to dispose of a rabbit's body without consulting a veterinarian or animal health officials, because rabbit hemorrhagic disease kills 50-100%[8] of infected rabbits and spreads through carcasses. If your rabbit died suddenly, testing may come first. If disease is ruled out, preservation is usually straightforward.
Do I need a permit to have a wild bird preserved in the US?
Most native wild birds are protected under federal law, and possessing one, even a bird you found dead, can be illegal without a permit. Domestic and captive-bred birds, such as budgies, cockatiels, parrots, chickens and domestic pigeons, are generally outside those rules. If your bird is anything else, ask the practitioner and your state wildlife agency before you ship.
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 California's cremation rate at 70.5% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] Embrace's Wellness Rewards add-on could reimburse up to $650 toward cremation, burial and keepsakes. Pet Insurance Review - Does Pet Insurance Cover Euthanasia? (Dec 2023), 2023.
- [7] Freeze-drying a 10 lb cat at one published price list would cost about USD 2,290–2,590. Our estimate: Low: 2,095 + 49 x (10-6) lb; High: 2,095 + 49 x 10 lb. How we calculate.
- [8] Rabbit hemorrhagic disease (RHDV2) kills 50-100% of infected rabbits; the first U.S. detection was in a pet rabbit in Ohio in 2018. USDA APHIS - Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease, 2018.
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