Pet taxidermy and freeze-dry options for Dublin, Ohio
Dublin has an estimated 18,000 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.
- Freeze first, decide later
- Published prices by pet size
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Dublin, Ohio
What pet preservation is like in Dublin
Dublin prides itself on community events, from the Irish festival in summer to neighborhood gatherings, and people here tend to know one another's animals. Let that network help after a loss. If sadness lingers, a counselor who understands pet grief, a telephone support line or a small online group can offer a listening ear that friends, however kind, sometimes cannot.
A Dublin farewell might be a quiet evening on the patio with the family, a walk down to the Scioto once the ashes are back, or a short private goodbye arranged before cremation. Some families invite the neighbors who shared years of front-yard conversations with their pet. Whatever you choose, there is no schedule to keep and no expectation you have to meet.
Working dogs around Dublin, such as a herding dog or a livestock guardian, can be big. A large dog won't fit into a small chest freezer once stiff, so settle them on one side with legs folded into a shape that fits before stiffness sets in. Big dogs also cost more and take longer, so ask practitioners to quote for a partial piece as well.
About 49,094 people live in Dublin, which makes it the 18th-largest of the 106 Ohio communities we cover. Some of the providers who serve Dublin are based about 13 miles away in Columbus, the nearest larger centre, so collection times reflect that drive.
For a second opinion on price, Powell (5 miles), Hilliard (5 miles) and Upper Arlington (7 miles) are close enough that their providers cover Dublin routinely. Two written quotes tell you more than any price list.
Our estimate
18,000
Dublin: dog- or cat-owning households, our estimate
How we calculated this
49,094 ÷ 2.5 = 19,638 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 18,000. A household with several pets counts once.
Our estimate
1,500
Estimated dog and cat losses in Dublin each year
How we calculated this
18,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 1,500 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 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 Ohio
Roughly 59.1%[5] of people in Ohio are cremated, and the rest are mostly buried, so families here are used to both ideas. Preservation is a third way of keeping a pet close, and one with a hard deadline: it has to be decided on, at least provisionally, before the body warms. Freeze first, and the burial or cremation choice for anything you don't keep can wait.
We take the Ohio rate from NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). It is a human statistic; there is no equivalent pet figure for Dublin, and we would rather show a real number than invent one.
How Dublin's climate affects the first hours
Cold, dry winter air in Dublin is kind to freeze-dried work, but carrying a preserved pet from a cold car into a warm house can fog a glass case with condensation. If your pet comes home in January, leave the box closed indoors for an hour or two so it warms gradually before you unwrap it.
Dry indoor heat through Dublin 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.
Budgeting for freeze-drying or taxidermy from Dublin
The simplest guide is weight. One published US price list charges USD 650[6] for a pet under a pound, $2,095 plus $49 a pound for pets of 6 to 19 lb, and $2,781 plus $69 a pound above 20 lb[7]. On our reading of that list, a 10 lb cat comes to about USD 2,291–2,585[8]. Other studios charge less, and some more.
We keep the detailed Ohio price table on one page so it stays current: see Ohio prices.
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 Ohio
If your pet bit someone shortly before dying, or showed signs of a disease that authorities must be told about, public-health rules come before any aftercare plan, and required testing can rule preservation out. Your vet will know what applies. For ordinary deaths from age, illness or accident, preservation raises no legal issue, and the burial and scattering guidance for Ohio below covers the rest.
Ohio keeps an official directory of local governments; use it to reach the county or city office that covers Dublin.
For Ohio's rules on burying a pet at home or scattering ashes, see the Ohio guide. Local rules in Dublin can be stricter than the state's, especially in homeowners' associations and rentals.
The first hours, step by step
- If your pet is at a clinic, ask the staff to write on the paperwork that your pet is held for preservation and must not be cremated.
- Ask them to freeze, not refrigerate, and to avoid shaving more fur than they need to.
- Bring your pet home frozen in a cooler, or arrange for the practitioner or a courier to collect.
- Keep your pet frozen solid for a day or two at minimum before shipping; practitioners generally insist on this.
- Pack in a thick cooler with dry ice, add whatever labels your carrier asks for, and ship it overnight early in the week, Monday or Tuesday.
- Keep the tracking number and ask the practitioner to confirm your pet went straight into their freezer.
Remembering your pet while you wait
Children in busy households benefit from a pause that is all about the animal. Explain in plain words what happened, then give them a role: writing a letter to tuck in with the urn, arranging photographs on a table, or helping pick a tree to plant. Revisiting that tree or those photos each year helps children keep the memory without it feeling heavy.
try the free planning tools, the guides answer the longer questions and the blog the newer ones, For a plain comparison of the choices, open services, or see what other families chose in the poll results. More local pages: Cleveland, Cincinnati, Toledo and Akron, the Ohio overview and every city in the United States.
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?
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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
How many pet owners live in Dublin?
By our estimate, about 18,000 households in Dublin have at least one dog or cat, and around 1,500 are lost each year. We calculate this from the city's population of about 49,094, the average household size and national ownership and lifespan figures, so treat it as a floor rather than an exact count.
How does Dublin's weather affect pet aftercare?
July is the hottest month in Dublin, with average highs around 85°F, so prompt collection matters most then. Average lows drop below freezing in January, February, March and December, which can make digging a grave hard until spring.
Will I have to travel to Columbus to arrange things?
Not usually. Providers based in Columbus (roughly 13 miles from Dublin) collect from here as a matter of routine, and the paperwork is done by email or phone. If you want to be present for a witnessed cremation, that is when the drive matters.
Can a provider from a neighbouring town collect from Dublin?
Usually yes. Powell is about 5 miles away, Hilliard is about 5 miles away and Upper Arlington is about 7 miles away, all inside a normal collection radius. Get the mileage written into the quote so there is no surprise on the day.
Can I keep my pet frozen outside during a Dublin winter?
It isn't safe for preservation. Outdoor temperatures rise during the day, sun warms dark fur and wild animals can get at a bag or box. Even a few hours of partial thawing followed by refreezing damages skin and fur. Use a real freezer, or ask your vet, an emergency clinic or a friend to hold your pet until you've chosen a practitioner.
How quickly do I need to freeze my pet for preservation?
Within a few hours if you can, and sooner in warm weather. Warmth loosens the skin's grip on the fur, and once fur starts slipping a practitioner can't reverse it. Lay your pet in a natural resting pose, double-bag them with the air pressed out and put them in the coldest freezer you have. You can choose the method and the practitioner later.
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] One U.S. pet preservation studio charges USD 650 to freeze-dry a pet under 1 lb, with a 4–6 month turnaround. Animal Family Pet — Pet Preservation Pricing & Shipping, 2026.
- [7] An Ohio pet preservation studio prices freeze-drying for pets over 20 lb at $2,781 plus $69 per pound, and 6–19 lb pets at $2,095 plus $49 per pound. Animal Family Pet Preservation – Pricing, 2026.
- [8] 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.
- [9] Freeze-drying a pet costs about 6 times as much as an average cremation. Our estimate: USD 1,500 (midpoint of USD 1,000–2,000) / USD 250. How we calculate.
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