Keeping your pet's paw print in Christchurch, Canterbury
About 8,550 households in Christchurch lose a dog or cat each year, by our estimate. A clear paw print, taken at home or by your vet, is often the keepsake people are most glad to have.
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Christchurch, Canterbury
Getting a paw print in Christchurch: the local picture
New Zealand's cremation rate is high, and keeping ashes at home is familiar to many Christchurch families. Outside, Canterbury's hot summers, winter frosts and drying nor'west winds are hard on painted wood and thin metal, while local stone, sealed timber and glazed ceramic last longer. A native plant, such as a kōwhai that flowers yellow each spring, or a harakeke flax, can make a fitting living memorial.
The earthquakes changed Christchurch, and many families think carefully about what a lasting memorial means. Portable memorials, such as a small urn, a keepsake box, a paw print impression or jewellery holding a few ashes, can move with you if you change homes. Some people also plant a tree in the garden, a living memorial that grows with the family.
Home goodbyes are increasingly common in Christchurch. If you're booking an in-home vet, ask whether they bring a clay kit and whether they'll take two prints, one for each person in the family. Taking your own print the day before, when your pet is calm and comfortable on their own bed, is another option and often gives a cleaner result.
Christchurch's population is around 383,000.
Our estimate
100,000
Christchurch: dog- or cat-owning households, our estimate
How we calculated this
383,000 ÷ 2.7 = 141,852 households; × 31% (dog) + 40% (cat) = 100,000. Multi-pet homes count once.
Our estimate
8,550
dog and cat deaths per year in Christchurch, our estimate
How we calculated this
100,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 8,550 a year. A floor, not a ceiling.
31%[1]
31% of New Zealand households have a dog, down from 34% in 2020.
12.69 years[2]
US dogs have an average life expectancy at birth of 12.69 years.
40%[3]
40% of New Zealand households have a cat - cats are NZ's most popular pet.
11.18 years[4]
US cats seen at Banfield hospitals have an average life expectancy at birth of 11.18 years.
We built the this numbers from Companion Animals New Zealand, 2024 NZ Pet Data Report and Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science, and both are worth a look if you want the detail.
Cremation habits in New Zealand and the print window
Cremation has become steadily more common in New Zealand, now chosen for about 69%[5] of those who die there, and newer pet aftercare providers have arrived with it. Some offer a 3D scan of the paw or a digital print file alongside the clay. If a provider mentions this, ask whether you'll receive the file itself, in a standard format, so you can take it to any maker later rather than only through them.
The Spinoff, citing FDANZ 2023 Funeral Industry Trends Report (2023) is where the New Zealand figure comes from. It counts people; we use it because attitudes to cremating a pet in Christchurch tend to follow attitudes to cremation generally.
When the weather works against clay and ink
Local weather in Christchurch affects a paw print more than you might think. In hot, dry spells, air-dry clay can crack if it dries too fast, so dry it slowly indoors and turn it often. In humid months it stays soft for longer, so be patient. In cold weather, warm the clay in your hands and never let plaster freeze before it has set.
What owners in Christchurch typically pay for a print
A home kit is the cheapest way to get a print in Christchurch, and it gives you as many copies as you like. Order one early, while your pet is well, because courier delivery to regional areas can take days. If you'd rather a crematorium did it, the median listed price for individually cremating a pet under 5 kg in Australia is around AUD 412[6], and a print is usually a small line on top of that.
The full price table by product is on our Canterbury page, and the services page explains what each option includes.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Local rules worth knowing in Canterbury
Nothing in Canterbury restricts a paw print, a nose print or a lock of fur. What local rules do shape is where ashes may go, and some favorite places, such as parks, beaches and trails, need the landowner's permission. If that permission is hard to get, a print can carry the memory of the place instead: frame it beside a photo taken there, or have the trail's name engraved under the paw.
In New Zealand, most vets work with a regional pet crematorium that can take a clay or ink paw print before cremation, often if you simply ask. Damp winters and humid summers in much of the country slow air-dry clay, so be patient before sealing. If you're in a rural area, the vet visit is usually the best moment for a print.
Getting a paw print in Christchurch, step by step
- Tell your child what's happening in plain words, then offer them a part in making the print if they want one. Our guide to print-making with children has age-by-age ideas for what they can do.
- Give them a real job: they can roll the clay, pick the card, or write the name.
- Let them press a hand or fingerprint beside the paw if they want to.
- If the print is taken after death, leave the pressing to an adult or the vet, then let your child see the result.
- Make a copy for your child's room, so the original can stay somewhere safe.
- Come back to it later. Some children want the print framed straight away; others return to it months on.
From paw print to pendant, frame or garden stone
Christchurch is surrounded by places to remember a pet: the Port Hills, the beaches at New Brighton and Sumner, Hagley Park and the Avon River winding through the central city. The Christchurch City Council sets rules for parks and beaches, so check before scattering, and ask the owner before using private land. A calm morning at Sumner, before the easterly picks up, is gentler than a windy afternoon.
browse in-depth guides or recent articles, For a plain comparison of the choices, open services, try the free planning tools, or look at how readers voted in our polls. Every other community in Canterbury, and all of New Zealand, is listed too.
Reader polls
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Free tools to help you plan
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Paw print keepsake chooser
Match a print method to your pet's size, fur and the keepsake you want to keep.
Jewelry ash capacity guide
How much ash fits in pendants, rings and glass, and how many pieces one pet can fill.
Questions people ask
How many pet owners live in Christchurch?
By our estimate, about 100,000 households in Christchurch have at least one dog or cat, and around 8,550 are lost each year. We calculate this from the city's population of about 383,000, the average household size and national ownership and lifespan figures, so treat it as a floor rather than an exact count.
Why does the Christchurch page quote a human cremation rate?
Because it is the best local signal we have. The Spinoff, citing FDANZ 2023 Funeral Industry Trends Report (2023) reports about 69%[5] of New Zealand residents are cremated. There is no official pet equivalent, and inventing one would be worse than quoting a real, clearly labelled number.
Why do so many owners miss the chance to take a print?
Because a print has a window. By our estimate, around 8,550 dogs and cats die in Christchurch each year, many of them suddenly or at an emergency clinic, when a clay kit is the last thing on anyone's mind. Taking a print while your pet is well, or asking for one when you book aftercare, is the simplest way not to miss it.
Can I get my dog's nose print?
Yes. Dab a small amount of pet-safe ink onto the nose with a soft sponge, or use an inkless wipe, then press a folded card gently against the nose from the front. It usually takes a few tries. The ridges on a dog's nose make a striking engraving on a pendant or an urn, and many providers take a nose print alongside the paw.
Can my pet's paw print be turned into a tattoo?
Yes, and it's a popular choice. A tattoo artist will want a clear, high-contrast flat print, so an ink or inkless print works better than clay. Scan it at a high resolution and bring the file to your consultation. Many people have the print tattooed at actual size, sometimes with the pet's name or a nose print alongside.
Is it possible to print a guinea pig's or hamster's feet?
Yes, but it takes patience and a light touch. Tiny feet leave only faint marks in ink, so very soft modeling clay or an inkless kit usually works better. Warm the clay well, cradle your pet in a towel on your lap and press the clay gently up to the foot rather than lowering the foot. For a hamster, one clear hind foot is plenty. If your pet is frightened, stop; letting your vet take it after death is gentler.
Sources and our estimates
- [1] 31% of New Zealand households have a dog, down from 34% in 2020. Companion Animals New Zealand, 2024 NZ Pet Data Report, 2024.
- [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] 40% of New Zealand households have a cat - cats are NZ's most popular pet. Companion Animals New Zealand, 2024 NZ Pet Data Report, 2024.
- [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] 69% of bodies in New Zealand were cremated in 2023, per the Funeral Directors Association of NZ. The Spinoff, citing FDANZ 2023 Funeral Industry Trends Report, 2023.
- [6] An Australian provider survey of listed prices puts the median individual cremation at AUD 412 for pets up to 5 kg (range AUD 295-612). Pet Farewell (Australia) - Pet Cremation Cost Australia (2026), 2026.
- [7] The median price multiple of private (ashes returned) over communal cremation across 8 markets is about 2.0x, ranging from 1.25x (Tokyo) to 5.2x (Auckland). Our estimate: median(private_price / communal_price) same weight band: US CareCredit 51-70 lb midpoints (250/75) = 3.33x; Auckland 15-25 kg (445/85) = 5.24x; Norway 1-20 kg (3790/1190) = 3.18x; Singapore 10-20 kg (480/260) = 1.85x; Ontario 25-250 lb (549/279) = 1.97x; Tokyo 20-30 kg (38500/30800) = 1.25x; France 20 kg midpoints (200/95) = 2.11x; Germany range midpoints (270/145) = 1.86x. How we calculate.
Get paw print options in Christchurch
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