Question for those who have had a furbaby cremated

[diesel]

We put our lab mix to sleep last year after a brief battle with cancer. When I called to make the appointment with the vet I asked about cremation and they gave me the #of the one they use. I called and made the arrangements and they picked him up at the vets and about a week later he came home to us via UPS. The UPS man must have noticed that the box contained his remains because he nicely put the package on a chair in our breezeway. Normally he would put any boxes we had delivered on the floor. I thought it was very nice of him to be so respectful of his remains.

I prefered that he was delivered UPS than having to go back to the vets and have the memory of the last place we had seen him.

 

[Regina]

We had our Molly individually cremated. I went to the Vet's office to pick up the ashes. (She's always right here on my desk shelf.)

My friend donated her mother's body for research. After a few months she got a notice that she had a package waiting at the Post Office. It was her mother's ashes and the box was clearly marked "human remains."

She said the clerk couldn't hand it over fast enough.

 

[luvwinnie]

Thank you all. The place our vet uses encourages you to watch the cremation, but there is no way we could do that. We ordered a pretty wooden urn for her and will put a favorite photo on it and put it our bedroom. She slept with us, so we'd feel better with her in that room. We miss her so much...our hearts just ache.

 

[mamamary]

Our vet's office took care of all the arrangements. There is a local pet cemetary/crematory in our town so it's very close by. The cremains were returned to the vet's office in a beautiful cherry wood box with a card of condolensce from the crematory. I picked them up at the vet's office and we all cried again!

This is very similar to our situation. Our vet's office also took care of everything. There is a vet/crematory (sort of odd to me) about a mile from our normal vet. The cremated remains were sent back to the vet (I never asked how - just assumed by car) within a week. My husband went and picked them up. We keep the wooden box under our bed (that's where Spencer would sleep every night).

Sorry for your loss

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

Thank you all. The place our vet uses encourages you to watch the cremation, but there is no way we could do that. We ordered a pretty wooden urn for her and will put a favorite photo on it and put it our bedroom. She slept with us, so we'd feel better with her in that room. We miss her so much...our hearts just ache.

What??? Why???

 

[luvmy2sams]

I can't imagine wanting to watch the cremation process!

Our vet had a new receptionist when our Riley died in 2005. She made some very inappropriate remarks that I won't get into at this time, and we were eventually given info about a pet crematorium in town. We left our baby at the vet's office, and the cremator delivered him to our home in a beautiful wooden urn. She was wonderful and made an awful experience at least a little more bearable. The vet's office, on the other hand, we'll never darken their door again.

Sounds like you have a lovely plan for Winnie. We've done something similiar with Riley. to you!

 

[daisax]

Sometimes people watch cremations, too (it's part of some Eastern religion in particular -- don't want to offend by guessing which one wrong!)

One of my dogs died at the vet's and I picked up the ashes there later. The other died at home and we dropped his body off at the Emergency vet (it was the weekend). Unfortunately the Emergency Vet has regularly scheduled pickups from the pet cemetery so they were able to keep him for me and handle the arrangements for a small fee. Otherwise it was Dec 23 and Saturday night and God knows what I would have done with the body!

So that's an option if you lose a pet unexpectedly and your vet is closed.

I've paid for individual cremation. Both times I've gotten the ashes back in a cheap tin -- one looks like the kind of sqaure tin you give cookies in at Christmas, and the other looks like one of those generic cans that a spring loaded snake flies out of. It's kind of bizarrely funny.

 

[bigtinkfun]

My heart goes out to you in your time of grief and sorrow. Winnie must have been ultra special!

When my heart's delight, my cat, Tibbles, died in 2003, I had her cremated as well. Our wonderful vet handled everything for us. We were too devastated to even think. The folks at St. Francis in Greenville, SC were very kind, they divided her cremains into 2 small wooden boxes, one for me and one for my brother, who loved her as much as I did. When I die, Tibbles' cremains will be mixed with mine, and we'll be buried together. That way, we can be together forever. Right now, she sits on a bookcase shelf next to her picture. I like to think she's watching over me as I sleep.