Pet taxidermy and freeze-dry options for New Berlin, Wisconsin
Roughly 1,200 dogs and cats die in New Berlin 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.
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New Berlin, Wisconsin
What pet preservation is like in New Berlin
Mourning a pet counts as real mourning, even if not everyone around you treats it that way. Free support lines for pet owners and online communities are open at all hours, and local therapists regularly help clients through pet loss. If the ache is no lighter a month later, or if a child is struggling, reaching out for help is the right call.
Some New Berlin families wait for the lilacs or the first warm evening on the patio before gathering to remember. There is no deadline, and the ashes will keep safely in the meantime. Pushing the date back lets relatives come and lets you plan something personal: a planting, a slideshow, or simply a meal together with stories. Keep it simple.
Rural power can be less reliable than in town, and preservation depends on a freezer that never fails. If your area around New Berlin 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 Milwaukee. A full, closed chest freezer holds its cold much longer than an upright one.
With roughly 39,953 residents, New Berlin is the 19th-largest of the 50 Wisconsin communities we cover. Some of the providers who serve New Berlin are based about 12 miles away in Milwaukee, the nearest larger centre, so collection times reflect that drive.
For a second opinion on price, West Allis (6 miles), Waukesha (6 miles) and Greenfield (6 miles) are close enough that their providers cover New Berlin routinely. Two written quotes tell you more than any price list.
Our estimate
14,500
New Berlin: dog- or cat-owning households, our estimate
How we calculated this
39,953 ÷ 2.5 = 15,981 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 14,500. Multi-pet homes count once.
Our estimate
1,200
Estimated dog and cat losses in New Berlin each year
How we calculated this
14,500 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 1,200 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.
If a number here surprises you, the primary material is Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science and American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry; we only apply it to this.
Aftercare traditions in Wisconsin, and choosing to preserve
With roughly 70.7%[5] of people cremated in Wisconsin, crematory vans often collect from vet clinics on a fixed schedule, sometimes daily. Ask what time the collection comes. If your pet died in the afternoon, there may be only hours before they're loaded with other pets. One call asking the clinic to pull your pet from the list and freeze them is the most useful thing you can do today.
For the Wisconsin figure we rely on NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). Read it as a picture of local custom around death and remembrance in New Berlin rather than as pet data.
How New Berlin weather changes your timeline
Cold, dry winter air in New Berlin 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.
New Berlin has 4 months with average lows below freezing, which slows things down a little in winter. Cold doesn't replace a freezer, though. A garage or porch warms up during the day and cools again at night, and those freeze-thaw swings damage skin and fur. Use a proper freezer, even in January, and keep your pet in it once they're in.
What pet preservation costs in New Berlin
Pet preservation is priced by weight, method and pose, not by city, so what you'd pay from New Berlin depends mostly on your pet and the practitioner you choose. One US price guide quotes freeze-drying a cat or small dog at $1,000–$2,500[6] and traditional taxidermy at $800–$2,500[7]. Large dogs cost several thousand dollars more. The published prices below come from US price lists and cost guides.
The full price table by product is on our Wisconsin 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.
When the rules in Wisconsin come into play
Shipping a frozen pet has its own rules. Dry ice is regulated for transport, so carriers ask for the package to be labeled with the amount used, and some services won't accept it at all. Ask your practitioner which carrier they want and follow their packing instructions exactly. For anything you don't preserve, the usual burial and scattering rules in Wisconsin apply.
Not sure which office covers New Berlin? The Wisconsin local government directory is the official list.
Home burial and scattering are governed at the Wisconsin level first; our Wisconsin rules summary has the detail. Then check whether New Berlin or your HOA adds anything.
What to do first if you might preserve your pet
- Find the nearest vet or emergency clinic to where you happen to be, and ask if they have a freezer your pet could go into today.
- Ask how long they could hold your pet, and find out if they'd release your pet to a courier or practitioner straight from their premises.
- If you have to drive home, buy a hard-sided cooler and dry ice, or failing that a generous load of bagged ice, with your pet sealed in two bags beneath a towel.
- Check the ice every few hours during the drive, and don't leave the cooler behind in a car sitting in the sun.
- Keep the clinic's paperwork showing the date, your pet's weight and what they died of; the practitioner will ask to see it.
- Choose the practitioner once you're settled, and take their advice on whether your pet should travel from the clinic or from home.
Other ways to keep your pet close
On New Berlin's large lots and quiet streets, animals often have the run of the yard, and families build routines around them: the morning let-out, the evening check on the barn, the spot by the patio door. When those routines stop, the silence can be striking. A modest goodbye in the living room, with a few words and a favorite photo, helps everyone mark the change.
use the free tools before you ring anyone, Compare every option on our services page, or compare your instinct with the poll results, look through our guides and the blog. Close to New Berlin we also cover Madison, Appleton, Racine and Kenosha; the full list for Wisconsin and for the United States is a click away.
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 your pet died today, could you freeze them properly within a few hours?
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
Does the New Berlin climate change what I should do first?
Only the timing. In July, with highs near 82°F, cool the body and book collection the same day. In January, February, March 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.
Is New Berlin big enough to have several pet aftercare providers?
Probably, on the numbers. By our estimate about 14,500 New Berlin households keep a dog or cat and around 1,200 lose one each year, which is enough steady demand to support more than one provider. We derive that from population (about 39,953), household size and national ownership and lifespan figures.
Which nearby towns can I compare with New Berlin?
The closest communities we cover are West Allis (about 6 miles), Waukesha (about 6 miles) and Greenfield (about 6 miles). Providers based in those places often serve New Berlin too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
How do Wisconsin attitudes to cremation compare?
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) puts the Wisconsin human cremation rate at about 70.7%[5]. We show it on the New Berlin 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.
What happens if something goes wrong during preservation?
Occasionally a practitioner finds damage once a pet thaws, often fur slipping because of a delay before freezing. A good one will call you, explain what they see and offer choices, such as switching to a partial piece or arranging cremation. Ask about this, and about refunds of the deposit, before you pay anything.
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.
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 Wisconsin's cremation rate at 70.7% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] 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.
- [7] Memorials.com puts traditional taxidermy at $800–$2,500 for a cat or small dog and $1,500–$5,000+ for a medium to large dog. Memorials.com – Pet Taxidermy Guide, 2025.
- [8] 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.
- [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.
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