Pet freeze-drying and taxidermy in The Colony
Roughly 1,400 dogs and cats die in The Colony 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 first, decide later
- Published prices by pet size
- Help finding a specialist who takes your species
The Colony, Texas
Preserving a pet from The Colony: the local picture
A goodbye in The Colony might happen at home with everyone crowded onto the sofa, in the private room of your veterinary clinic, or later at Stewart Creek Park with the ashes and a few close friends. Some people read a short poem; others light a candle or play a song the animal seemed to like. The best farewell is simply one that fits your family.
Children in The Colony often grow up with pets as steady companions through school years and moves. When one dies, give them honest words and something to do: drawing a portrait, choosing a favorite photo, decorating a stone for the garden. Adults can create their own quiet ritual, like watching the sunset over Lewisville Lake from the shoreline trail on the anniversary each year.
Rural power can be less reliable than in town, and preservation depends on a freezer that never fails. If your area around The Colony loses power in storms, think now about a backup: a generator, a neighbor's freezer on a different line, or dry ice from a larger centre such as Frisco. A full, closed chest freezer holds its cold much longer than an upright one.
The Colony is home to about 46,196 people, the 79th-largest of the 325 Texas communities we cover. The nearest larger centre is Frisco, about 6 miles (10 km) away, which is where some providers serving The Colony are based.
If you want to compare providers, look at Lewisville (6 miles, a larger centre), Frisco (6 miles, a larger centre) and Little Elm (7 miles). Distance matters because pickup fees and the time until the ashes come back both grow with the drive.
Our estimate
17,000
How many dog- or cat-owning households The Colony has (estimate)
How we calculated this
46,196 ÷ 2.5 = 18,478 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 17,000. Homes are counted once however many pets they keep.
Our estimate
1,400
Estimated dog and cat losses in The Colony each year
How we calculated this
17,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 1,400 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 Texas
About 55.7%[5] of people in Texas 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.
The Texas figure comes from NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). It describes people, not pets, so read it as a sign of local attitudes rather than a pet statistic.
How The Colony's climate affects the first hours
With June, July, August and September running hot in The Colony, the window between death and damage is short. Don't lay your pet on a soft bed or carpet, which holds heat against the body, and don't leave them in a car, even briefly. If you have to transport them to a clinic freezer, pack them in a cooler with bagged ice under a towel and run the air conditioning.
Once your preserved pet is home in The Colony, sunlight is the quiet risk. Strong summer light through a window fades dark fur toward brown and dries the delicate skin of the nose and ears. Pick a spot that never gets direct sun, or ask for a case with UV-filtering glass. Room warmth alone is rarely the problem; sun, moisture and time together are.
Budgeting for freeze-drying or taxidermy from The Colony
Large dogs are where prices climb fastest. On one US studio's published list, pets over 20 lb are priced at $2,781 + $69/lb[6]; by our estimate, a 50 lb dog would come to ~$4,851[7] on that list before a base or shipping. Ask several practitioners for a quote by weight, and ask whether a head-and-shoulders piece or a paw would be possible instead.
The Texas 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.
Permits, contracts and paperwork in Texas
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 Texas allows for home burial and scattering too.
The official Texas local government directory lists every county and city office, which is the quickest way to find who to ask in The Colony.
The rules that apply across Texas (home burial, scattering and who oversees pet cremation) are summarized on our Texas page. The Colony may add its own conditions, so check with the city or county before digging.
The first hours, step by step
- Check how warm the room is first. Turn on the air conditioning or carry your pet to the coolest tiled or concrete floor in the house.
- Use what you have tonight. A cleared kitchen freezer, or a cooler of bagged ice under a towel, will hold a small pet until morning.
- Leave the coat dry. Blot the mouth and rear with paper towel only; wet fur freezes into clumps that are harder to work with.
- Write down when you found your pet and the time they were put in the cold; a best guess is fine if you aren't sure.
- Phone your vet when they open if your pet won't fit in your freezer, and be clear that a preservation specialist will be taking them.
- Contact practitioners once your pet is frozen solid, telling them what kind of animal, how heavy, and attaching a current photo.
Keepsakes, displays and gentler options
Grief can catch you off guard in The Colony: on the drive home along the tollway, at the trailhead you used to visit together, or when a neighbor asks after your pet over the back fence. Let people know. Pet-loss phone services, internet grief forums and therapists focused on animal bereavement offer a place to talk when friends aren't enough.
the planning tools turn your pet's details into figures, the guides answer the longer questions and the blog the newer ones, or compare your instinct with the poll results, Compare every option on our services page. If you live between The Colony and San Antonio, Austin, El Paso and Houston, either page applies. Every other community in Texas, 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.
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 your pet died today, could you freeze them properly within a few hours?
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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
Where are the providers that serve The Colony actually based?
Some are local, and some run from Frisco, about 6 miles away. That is normal for a town this size. What matters is the collection time they quote for The Colony and whether the drive is priced into the total, so ask both up front.
Is The Colony big enough to have several pet aftercare providers?
Probably, on the numbers. By our estimate about 17,000 The Colony households keep a dog or cat and around 1,400 lose one each year, which is enough steady demand to support more than one provider. We derive that from population (about 46,196), household size and national ownership and lifespan figures.
How does The Colony's weather affect pet aftercare?
July is the hottest month in The Colony, with average highs around 96°F, so prompt collection matters most then. Winters are mild, with average lows staying above freezing, so outdoor burial or scattering is usually possible year round.
Which nearby towns can I compare with The Colony?
The closest communities we cover are Lewisville (about 6 miles), Frisco (about 6 miles) and Little Elm (about 7 miles). Providers based in those places often serve The Colony too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
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%[9] 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.
Can a pet still be preserved after a post-mortem?
Usually not as a whole-body piece, because a post-mortem (necropsy) involves incisions and removing tissue. A smaller piece, like a paw, the tail or feathers, may still be possible if those areas weren't affected. If you want both answers about how your pet died and a preserved piece, talk to your vet and a practitioner before the examination, not after.
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 Texas's cremation rate at 55.7% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] 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.
- [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] 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] 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.
Tell us about your pet and what you'd like kept
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.