Pet freeze-drying and taxidermy in Dickinson
Roughly 790 dogs and cats die in Dickinson each year, by our estimate, and most go to cremation by default. If you'd like to preserve yours, tell your vet today and get them into a freezer within hours.
- Freeze-drying, taxidermy or a partial keepsake
- Honest about waits and results
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Dickinson, North Dakota
Where Dickinson owners find freezer space and practitioners
A farewell can be simple: a few family members together at home, a candle, a photo on the table. Ranch families sometimes mark the loss on the land itself, at a favorite spot overlooking the pasture or near the old barn. If you want to hold something more formal, you can wait until the weather and schedules allow everyone to be there.
In a town where many people work long hours in oil fields, on ranches or at the university, grief over a pet can go unspoken. Tell someone you trust. Phone lines and online forums for pet loss are available at any hour, and a counselor can help if sadness lingers. There is nothing unusual about grieving hard for an animal that was part of daily life.
In a town like Dickinson, the local vet may never have had a preservation request. Explain simply that you'd like your pet frozen, not refrigerated, and kept out of the cremation collection. If the clinic has no freezer space, most rural homes have a chest freezer somewhere, and a relative's will do for a few days while you choose a practitioner.
About 25,870 people live in Dickinson, which makes it the 7th-largest of the 10 North Dakota communities we cover.
Nearby, we also have local pages for Mandan (90 miles), Bismarck (95 miles, a larger centre) and Williston (98 miles), which can help if your vet or the provider you prefer is based there.
Our estimate
9,500
Estimated dog- or cat-owning households in Dickinson
How we calculated this
25,870 ÷ 2.5 = 10,348 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 9,500. Multi-pet homes count once.
Our estimate
790
dog and cat deaths per year in Dickinson, our estimate
How we calculated this
9,500 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 790 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.
Cremation, burial and preservation in North Dakota
About 60.0%[5] of people in North Dakota choose cremation. Attitudes are shifting, and that openness extends to pets, where families increasingly want something personal rather than the standard option. Preservation is the most personal of all, and still unusual. Expect to explain what you want to your vet more than once, and to find the practitioner yourself.
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) is where the North Dakota figure comes from. It counts people; we use it because attitudes to cremating a pet in Dickinson tend to follow attitudes to cremation generally.
How Dickinson weather changes your timeline
In January, February, March, April, October, November and December, it's tempting to leave a pet outside in Dickinson because it's cold enough. Please don't. Sunlight, wild animals and daytime thaws are all real risks, and a preserved pet needs to have stayed frozen without interruption. If there's no freezer space at home, ask your vet, or a friend with a chest freezer, to hold your pet for a few days.
Dry indoor heat through Dickinson winters is fine for a preserved pet, but placement still matters. Keep the piece away from radiators, heating vents and fireplaces, which dry and crack delicate features, and away from cold windows where condensation forms. A shelf on an inside wall, out of direct sun, usually suits a freeze-dried or mounted pet well year-round.
What pet preservation costs in Dickinson
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.
The North Dakota price table breaks costs down by product; our services page explains what sits behind each line.
Free tool
Freeze-dry & taxidermy cost estimator
Estimate cost and waiting time for freeze-drying or taxidermy by size and pose.
Rules worth knowing in North Dakota
Before you commit to preservation, check two things with the practitioner: whether your species needs any permit where they are, and whether they're allowed to receive it. Rules for domestic cats and dogs are light; rules for native birds and reptiles can be strict and vary by place. If the rest of your pet is going to be buried or cremated, check what North Dakota allows for home burial and scattering too.
North Dakota keeps an official directory of local governments; use it to reach the county or city office that covers Dickinson.
Home burial and scattering are governed at the North Dakota level first; our North Dakota rules summary has the detail. Then check whether Dickinson or your HOA adds anything.
Just lost your pet? An order to follow
- Freeze first, decide later. A pet frozen quickly and kept frozen can wait weeks while you choose.
- Blot, don't wash. Pat away any fluid with a paper towel and leave the fur dry.
- Pose gently and bag tightly. Curl them as if asleep, then seal them in two thick bags, squeezing out the air so the face and ears don't get freezer burn.
- Plan for a power cut. Work out now where dry ice or a spare freezer could come from, in case the power stayed off longer than a day.
- Ask two or three practitioners if they accept an animal of your pet's kind and weight, what their current wait looks like, and how they prefer to receive pets.
- Ship or drop off frozen, early in the week if shipping, and ask for confirmation the moment your pet arrives.
Once the finished piece is home in Dickinson
Children in Dickinson may know animals both as pets and as working stock, and the death of a family pet can raise questions about why this loss feels different. Answer them honestly. Let children help with a memorial, like choosing a photo or making a card, and keep familiar routines going. A yearly remembrance can become a comforting family tradition.
the planning tools turn your pet's details into figures, there are guides for the big decisions and articles for the details, The services page is the place to compare what is included, or compare your instinct with the poll results. If you live between Dickinson and Williston, Bismarck, Minot and West Fargo, either page applies. Every other community in North Dakota, 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 preserving your pet, which route would you lean toward?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
How do you feel about waiting months for a preserved pet to come home?
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?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Questions people ask
Can a provider from a neighbouring town collect from Dickinson?
Usually yes. Mandan is about 90 miles away, Bismarck is about 95 miles away and Williston is about 98 miles away, all inside a normal collection radius. Get the mileage written into the quote so there is no surprise on the day.
Does the Dickinson climate change what I should do first?
Only the timing. In July, with highs near 84°F, cool the body and book collection the same day. In January, February, March, April, October, 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.
How do North Dakota attitudes to cremation compare?
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) puts the North Dakota human cremation rate at about 60.0%[5]. We show it on the Dickinson 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.
Roughly how many pets die in Dickinson each year?
Our estimate is around 790. It comes from Dickinson's population (about 25,870), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 9,500 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
Can my vet in Dickinson freeze my pet for me?
Many vets can hold a pet frozen for a few days, but you have to ask, because the usual routine is to send deceased pets for cremation. Tell the clinic as soon as possible that you're considering preservation, ask them to freeze rather than refrigerate, and ask them to note it on the paperwork. Check how long they can keep your pet and when you need to collect.
How many pets die in Dickinson each year, and how many are preserved?
Our estimate for Dickinson is roughly 790 dog and cat deaths a year, across about 9,500 homes with a dog or cat. Just a small fraction are preserved; one market report puts taxidermy at about 7%[8] of owners' choices, and many families end up with a partial keepsake instead. You won't be the first to ask, but your vet may not have been asked before.
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 North Dakota's cremation rate at 60.0% 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] On a per-pound-above-threshold reading of its price list, one Ohio studio would charge about $4,851 to freeze-dry a 50 lb dog. Our estimate: $2,781 + $69 × (50 − 20) lb. How we calculate.
- [8] About 7% of pet owners choose taxidermy, per Astute Analytica. Astute Analytica via GlobeNewswire — Global Pet Preservation Services Market to Hit USD 112.7 Million by 2032 (Apr 2, 2024), 2024.
Find a preservation specialist for your pet
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.