Keeping your pet's paw print in Denver, Colorado
Denver has an estimated 275,000 dog- or cat-owning households. If yours is one of them, a print taken now, or before cremation, is the keepsake you can't go back for.
- Home kit or vet-taken: your choice
- Tips for heat, humidity and cold
- Ideas for jewelry, engraving and art
Denver, Colorado
Who takes paw prints in Denver
Many Denver owners think of the Rockies, Red Rocks or a favorite hike in the foothills when they imagine scattering ashes. State and national lands have their own policies, so look them up before you go and choose a quiet place away from water sources. A biodegradable urn with a pine or aspen seedling in your yard can also make a meaningful memorial.
Denver has a lively art scene, and many local studios make custom urns in pottery, wood or glass, alongside pendants, engraved stones and paw print castings. Small memorials fit easily into lofts and apartments. For a large animal, check with the provider on the likely volume of ashes before you order a vessel, since it can be several times what a small pet returns.
Long commutes and full diaries in Denver mean many pets spend the day with a dog walker, a sitter or a daycare. If your pet is elderly or unwell, have a short conversation with whoever cares for them while you're out: who to call first, which vet to use, and that you'd like a paw print taken before anyone arranges collection. Leave a small clay kit with your emergency notes, so the one request that can't wait isn't lost.
Denver's population is around 740,613, the largest of the 36 Colorado communities we cover.
If you want to compare providers, look at Lakewood (5 miles), Englewood (6 miles) and Wheat Ridge (7 miles). Distance matters because pickup fees and the time until the ashes come back both grow with the drive.
Our estimate
275,000
Estimated dog- or cat-owning households in Denver
How we calculated this
740,613 ÷ 2.5 = 296,245 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 275,000. A household with several pets counts once.
Our estimate
22,500
Estimated dog and cat losses in Denver each year
How we calculated this
275,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 22,500 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.
None of the figures on this this page are ours alone: they rest on American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry and Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science.
How Colorado thinks about cremation, and why prints matter
With about 77.4%[5] of people in Colorado cremated, most local families already know the rhythm of a cremation: collection, a few days' wait, then the ashes come home. A print fits neatly into the start of that process, before collection. Once your pet is cremated, the chance is gone, so the first phone call is the right moment to mention it.
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) is where the Colorado figure comes from. It counts people; we use it because attitudes to cremating a pet in Denver tend to follow attitudes to cremation generally.
Heat, humidity, cold and drying times
Plaster and cold don't mix well. Plaster sets more slowly in a cold room, and if the water in it freezes before it cures, the cast turns chalky and crumbles. In January, February, March, November and December, mix plaster with lukewarm water, let it set somewhere warm indoors and never leave a curing cast in a car, porch or shed overnight. The same goes for air-dry clay.
Snow and ice in January, February, March, November and December can hold up home-visit vets and collection vans around Denver, sometimes by a day. If your pet dies during a storm or a cold snap, you may be caring for them longer than you expected. Keep them in the chilliest room of the house, away from heating, on a towel or blanket. Take the print early in that time, while the paws are still soft enough to press cleanly.
Paw print costs around Denver, line by line
The print itself is cheap; what you turn it into is where the budget goes. At one urn retailer, an engraved paw print added to an urn typically costs $20–$35[6] and paw and nose print pendants start from $99.95[7]; a custom sterling silver charm made from your pet's actual print costs about $143 before the chain[8]. Custom silver print charms from one crematory network run $290 to $420[9].
We keep the detailed Colorado price table on one page so it stays current: see Colorado prices.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Local rules worth knowing in Colorado
There are no rules about taking a paw print; it's yours to do at home, at the clinic or at the crematory. Where Colorado does have rules is what happens next: whether your pet can be buried at home and where ashes can be scattered. Those choices can affect your print too, for example if you want it set into a garden stone or a grave marker.
Denver's own guidance is published by City and County of Denver; it covers public collection, which is separate from arranging a private cremation. The official Colorado local government directory lists every county and city office, which is the quickest way to find who to ask in Denver.
Home burial and scattering are governed at the Colorado level first; our Colorado rules summary has the detail. Then check whether Denver or your HOA adds anything.
In order: the print, the aftercare, the keepsake
- Decide who will take the print: you at home, your vet, or the crematory at intake. The earlier in the process, the more control you have.
- Tell the crematory in writing you'd like a print, and request a picture of it ahead of the cremation.
- Ask how your pet is identified from collection to return, so the print and the ashes definitely belong together.
- Ask about fur clippings too; many providers can add a lock of fur to the print.
- Plan the finishing later. Jewelry or artwork can wait as long as it needs to; make that choice once you feel ready.
- If you'd like help, send us a few details; we'll write back by email laying out the options.
Ways families in Denver keep a print close
Hail, sun and repeated freezing and thawing are hard on outdoor memorials along the Front Range. Solid granite, flagstone or metal markers hold up far better than painted wood or resin. If you rent, a large pot with a hardy perennial and a small engraved stone keeps the memorial movable. Placing the marker where it gets afternoon shade also slows fading.
See what each option includes on our services page, use the free tools before you ring anyone, read our guides and latest articles, or compare your instinct with the poll results. Close to Denver we also cover Aurora, Arvada, Colorado Springs and Lakewood; the full list for Colorado 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.
Who would you rather take the print?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
What worries you most about taking a print yourself?
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If you had to decide today, which aftercare would you choose for your pet?
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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 does Denver's weather affect pet aftercare?
July is the hottest month in Denver, with average highs around 90°F, so prompt collection matters most then. Average lows drop below freezing in January, February, March, November and December, which can make digging a grave hard until spring.
Which nearby towns can I compare with Denver?
The closest communities we cover are Lakewood (about 5 miles), Englewood (about 6 miles) and Wheat Ridge (about 7 miles). Providers based in those places often serve Denver too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
Roughly how many pets die in Denver each year?
Our estimate is around 22,500. It comes from Denver's population (about 740,613), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 275,000 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
How do Colorado attitudes to cremation compare?
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) puts the Colorado human cremation rate at about 77.4%[5]. We show it on the Denver 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.
How many households in Denver have a dog or cat?
By our estimate, about 275,000 households in Denver have a dog or a cat, and around 22,500 dogs and cats are lost there each year. We calculate this from the city's population, average household size and national pet ownership and lifespan figures. The method is shown on this page.
Why take a paw print in Denver if I already have plenty of photos?
Photos show what your pet looked like; a print records something you touched every day, at actual size. We estimate Denver has around 275,000 dog- or cat-owning homes and loses about 22,500 of those pets a year. Most of those owners have hundreds of photos. The difference is that photos can be found later, while a print only exists if someone makes it before the body is cremated or buried, which is why it's worth doing first.
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 Colorado's cremation rate at 77.4% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] Adding an engraved paw print or symbol to a pet urn typically costs $20–$35. Memorials.com – Pet Urn Cost Guide, 2025.
- [7] Paw print and nose print pendants at Memorials.com start at $99.95. Memorials.com – Pet print jewelry, 2026.
- [8] A custom sterling silver actual-paw-print charm costs $143 before the chain (about $59–$79 for silver) and takes about 2 weeks to make. String of Jewels – Actual paw print necklace, 2026.
- [9] Final Gift's pet memorial jewelry runs from a $60 urn pendant to $290–$420 for custom sterling silver print charms, with glass ash beads at $245. Final Gift Pet Memorial Center – Memorial Products, 2026.
- [10] 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 Denver
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