Pet preservation in Orem
By our estimate, about 35,000 households in Orem have a dog or cat. Only a small share of families ever consider preservation, so if you're one of them, here's how to freeze your pet in time and what comes next.
- Freeze-drying, taxidermy or a partial keepsake
- Honest about waits and results
- Written quotes you can compare
Orem, Utah
Arranging preservation from Orem: the practical side
A family farewell can be as simple as you like. Many Orem households gather on the lawn or around the couch, trade a few memories, and let children lay a note or a flower beside their pet before it is carried out. If euthanasia happens at home, ask the vet to leave some quiet time before the aftercare provider knocks.
Some people find the first holidays hardest, especially in a city where family gatherings anchor the calendar. Setting out a framed photo, lighting a candle, or sharing a funny memory of the pet over dinner can make the empty spot easier to mention. If grief still disrupts ordinary days a month or two later, a therapist with pet-bereavement experience can help.
Around Orem, the nearest vet may also treat farm animals and keep a large freezer at the practice for them. It's worth asking about. Mixed practices sometimes have more cold storage than town clinics, and rural vets tend to be calm and practical about unusual requests. Explain that your pet needs to stay frozen, flat and undisturbed until you've chosen a practitioner.
Orem is home to about 95,214 people, the 7th-largest of the 52 Utah communities we cover. Salt Lake City, roughly 34 miles off, is the closest larger centre, and a share of the providers who cover Orem run from there.
The closest communities we cover are Provo (5 miles), Pleasant Grove (6 miles) and American Fork (7 miles). Providers serving those towns often travel to Orem too, so it can be worth asking them for a quote.
Our estimate
35,000
Estimated dog- or cat-owning households in Orem
How we calculated this
95,214 ÷ 2.5 = 38,086 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 35,000. A household with several pets counts once.
Our estimate
2,900
Orem families who lose a dog or cat each year (estimate)
How we calculated this
35,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 2,900 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 published sources behind those figures are Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science and American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry.
Why preservation means speaking up early in Utah
Burial is still the usual choice for people in Utah, where about 46.1%[5] are cremated. Pet aftercare often follows the same instinct, with many pets buried at home. Preservation asks something different: a body kept above ground, on display, for years. Talk it through with the people you live with, since it's their home too, before you commit to a full-body piece.
That Utah rate is a human one, published by NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). We quote it for Orem only as a pointer to how families here already think about cremation.
How Orem weather changes your timeline
Weather in Orem swings from hot summers to winters with lows below freezing in January, February, November and December, and both seasons bring storms that can cut the power. Have a plan before you need it: know where to buy dry ice, keep the freezer lid shut through an outage and ask a neighbor on another line or a vet clinic to take your pet if the power stays off.
It's worth thinking about when a finished piece travels back to Orem. Some practitioners avoid shipping through the peak heat of July or the storms of January, February, November and December, and will hold a finished pet until the weather settles. Ask when they plan to send yours, and arrange to be home so the box comes straight indoors.
Preservation prices beside other aftercare
It helps to set preservation beside ordinary aftercare. Private dog cremation averages about $260[6] nationally, while one price guide puts freeze-drying a cat or little dog at $1,000–$2,500[7]. By our estimate, that makes freeze-drying roughly ten times the price of a private cremation[8]. Seen that way, a single preserved paw with the rest cremated can be a sensible middle path for families in Orem.
The full price table by product is on our Utah page, and the services page explains what each option includes.
Free tool
Freeze-dry & taxidermy cost estimator
Estimate cost and waiting time for freeze-drying or taxidermy by size and pose.
What Utah rules mean for a preserved pet
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.
Not sure which office covers Orem? The Utah local government directory is the official list.
For Utah's rules on burying a pet at home or scattering ashes, see the Utah guide. Local rules in Orem can be stricter than the state's, especially in homeowners' associations and rentals.
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.
Caring for the piece, and for the memories
Orem has a large student population, and for many people at the university a pet is the first animal they have cared for on their own. Losing that companion far from family can feel isolating. Free pet-loss helplines run by veterinary schools will talk with anyone, the campus counseling office may also help, and roommates often turn out to be a real support once you tell them.
the guides answer the longer questions and the blog the newer ones, the planning tools turn your pet's details into figures, or see what other families chose in the poll results, The services page is the place to compare what is included. More local pages: West Jordan, West Valley City, Salt Lake City and Provo, the Utah 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.
If you were preserving your pet, which route would you lean toward?
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Where would a preserved pet live in your home?
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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
Why does the Orem 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 46.1%[5] of Utah residents are cremated. There is no official pet equivalent, and inventing one would be worse than quoting a real, clearly labelled number.
Will I have to travel to Salt Lake City to arrange things?
Not usually. Providers based in Salt Lake City (roughly 34 miles from Orem) 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.
Which nearby towns can I compare with Orem?
The closest communities we cover are Provo (about 5 miles), Pleasant Grove (about 6 miles) and American Fork (about 7 miles). Providers based in those places often serve Orem too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
How many pet owners live in Orem?
By our estimate, about 35,000 households in Orem have at least one dog or cat, and around 2,900 are lost each year. We calculate this from the city's population of about 95,214, the average household size and national ownership and lifespan figures, so treat it as a floor rather than an exact count.
What should I send the practitioner besides my pet?
Photographs, and plenty of them. The face in good daylight from the front and both sides, how your pet's ears and eyes looked when relaxed, their favorite sleeping position and any unusual markings. Mention quirks too, like a tongue that always poked out. Practitioners never met your pet, so these details are what make the finished piece look like them rather than any cat or dog.
The only taxidermist near Orem does deer. Can they do my cat?
They might, but ask to see cats or dogs they've finished before you agree. Recreating a pet's face is a different skill from mounting game, because you know every detail of how your pet looked. A game taxidermist can still be a big help in the first hours, by freezing your pet properly or pointing you to a pet specialist.
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 Utah's cremation rate at 46.1% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] CareCredit's 2025 cost study put the US national average for private dog cremation at $260 (range $206-$473). CareCredit (Synchrony) - How Much Does It Cost To Euthanize a Dog? (2025 ASQ360 procedural cost study), 2025.
- [7] Memorials.com puts freeze-drying at $1,000–$2,500 for a cat or small dog and $2,000–$5,000+ for a medium to large dog. Memorials.com – Pet Taxidermy Guide, 2025.
- [8] Freeze-drying a cat or small dog costs about 10 times a private cremation. Our estimate: midpoint freeze-dry $1,750 ($1,000–$2,500) / $175 (private cremation 3–24 lb, NC provider). 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.
Ask which practitioners take 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.