Paw and nose prints in Pueblo: a calm guide
Pueblo has an estimated 40,500 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.
- Nose prints and fur clippings too
- Keep a scan so the original stays home
- Options that serve Pueblo
Pueblo, Colorado
Getting a paw print in Pueblo: the local picture
Pueblo homes often have yards with room for a garden memorial, whether that is a flat stone among the xeriscape, a small marker under a shade tree or a planted rose. Indoors, a shelf urn or framed paw print suits smaller homes and apartments. If you think you may move, pick a memorial that travels, or keep a small portion of ashes separately.
Strong sun, dry air and hard freezes in winter are tough on anything left outdoors in Pueblo. Granite, basalt and bronze last well; resin and painted wood tend to crack and fade. For a memorial tree, choose something adapted to the semi-arid climate and plan for regular watering in the first few summers. Spring is the easiest planting season here, after the last frost.
If your dog or cat has a regular groomer in Pueblo, ask for their help. A quick paw tidy a day or two before a planned goodbye trims the fur between the pads and around the toes, which is the difference between a clear print and a fuzzy oval. Many groomers will fit in a short, gentle appointment for an elderly pet once they know why. Ask them to leave the fur around the outer edge so the outline stays.
About 110,404 people live in Pueblo, which makes it the 10th-largest of the 36 Colorado communities we cover. The nearest larger centre is Colorado Springs, about 40 miles (65 km) away, which is where some providers serving Pueblo are based.
Families in Pueblo often end up using a provider from Fountain (29 miles), Colorado Springs (41 miles, a larger centre) and Castle Rock (78 miles). That is normal: crematories serve a radius, not a single town, and the drive is priced into collection.
Our estimate
40,500
Estimated dog- or cat-owning households in Pueblo
How we calculated this
110,404 ÷ 2.5 = 44,162 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 40,500. Multi-pet homes count once.
Our estimate
3,400
dog and cat deaths per year in Pueblo, our estimate
How we calculated this
40,500 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 3,400 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.
Ashes, graves and the print that comes first
Cremation is the norm for people in Colorado (about 77.4%[5] of deaths), and pet crematories there tend to offer a long menu of extras: paw prints, nose prints, fur clippings, name plates, photo urns. It's easy to feel you ought to say yes to everything. You don't have to. Pick the one or two things you'll actually look at in five years' time. For many families, that's a clear print and a small lock of fur.
Source for the Colorado number: NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). Nobody publishes a pet cremation rate for Pueblo, so the human figure is the best local signal available.
When the weather works against clay and ink
If you've bought a print kit to keep for later, store it indoors, not in the garage. In Pueblo, a garage can top 93°F in July and drop below freezing in January, and both extremes spoil supplies: heat dries out ink pads and clay, frost splits plaster bags and stiffens molding putty. Check the kit every few months, and replace the clay if it has hardened in the packet.
Planning an outdoor memorial in Pueblo? A garden stone set with your pet's print is lovely, but concrete won't cure properly in frost and can crack in extreme summer heat. Take the print now in clay or ink, keep it safe inside and make the stone in spring or autumn, when the weather is mild and the ground is workable.
Paw print prices: kits, add-ons and finishing
If the print is heading for jewelry, budget for the metal rather than the print. By our estimate, a typical sterling silver pet pendant costs about $190[6], and entry-level solid gold pieces at the same retailer cost about 15 times the silver equivalent[7]. Ask any maker in Pueblo whether the quote includes the chain, a proof image before production and engraving on the back, because those three extras are where quotes differ most.
Prices for Pueblo track the wider Colorado market, so use the Colorado price table as your baseline and the services page to see what is included.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
What Colorado allows after your pet dies
Paw prints sit outside most regulation, but the aftercare around them doesn't. Your local council or city, and the wider rules for Colorado, may limit burying a pet at home and scattering ashes in public places. Check the notes below before you plan a garden memorial with your pet's print pressed into it.
To find your county or city office in Colorado, start with the official Colorado local government directory.
The rules that apply across Colorado (home burial, scattering and who oversees pet cremation) are summarized on our Colorado page. Pueblo may add its own conditions, so check with the city or county before digging.
How to make sure a print is taken in time
- Mention the print when you book the euthanasia appointment or cremation, not on the day. Ask for it to be written on the aftercare form.
- Ask what kind they take: a clay disc, an ink print or both. If you might want jewelry later, ask for an ink or inkless print as well.
- Ask for two copies if more than one person in the family would like one.
- Ask to see or photograph the print before your pet leaves the clinic, so it can be retaken if it's smudged.
- Check how it comes back: in your hands the same day, or alongside the ashes later, and what name goes on it.
- Keep the paperwork so that, once everything is returned, the invoice, ashes and print can be tied together.
Ways families in Pueblo keep a print close
Pueblo has deep Hispanic roots, and many families bring traditions of remembrance into their homes: a small altar with photos and candles, marigolds in autumn, a special place for mementos. Pets can have a place there too. A small urn, a photo in a decorated frame or a collar hung nearby lets an animal be remembered alongside the people the family honors.
try the free planning tools, the guides answer the longer questions and the blog the newer ones, or compare your instinct with the poll results, Our services overview lays out every option side by side. Close to Pueblo we also cover Thornton, Aurora, Denver 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.
When did (or will) you take your pet's 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
Why does the Pueblo 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 77.4%[5] of Colorado residents are cremated. There is no official pet equivalent, and inventing one would be worse than quoting a real, clearly labelled number.
Does the Pueblo climate change what I should do first?
Only the timing. In July, with highs near 93°F, cool the body and book collection the same day. In January, February, March, November 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 Pueblo big enough to have several pet aftercare providers?
Probably, on the numbers. By our estimate about 40,500 Pueblo households keep a dog or cat and around 3,400 lose one each year, which is enough steady demand to support more than one provider. We derive that from population (about 110,404), household size and national ownership and lifespan figures.
Which nearby towns can I compare with Pueblo?
The closest communities we cover are Fountain (about 29 miles), Colorado Springs (about 41 miles) and Castle Rock (about 78 miles). Providers based in those places often serve Pueblo too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
Can I take the print myself before the vet or crematory arrives?
Absolutely, and many people prefer to. Have the clay warmed or the card taped down before the appointment, choose a quiet room and take a few prints while your pet is calm. If collection is happening after a home euthanasia, the team will usually wait a few minutes while you take one afterwards too. Just let them know.
How do I get a nose print from my cat?
Cats have small noses and dislike being fussed, so pick a sleepy moment. Use an inkless wipe or the lightest dab of pet-safe ink on a soft sponge, then touch a small folded card to the nose from the front and lift away. Expect a faint, partial print; that's normal. Take several attempts over a few days rather than persisting in one session, and wipe the nose clean afterwards so your cat doesn't lick the residue.
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] The typical sterling silver pet cremation pendant costs about $190, based on the middle of three sellers' price points. Our estimate: median of [Urns.com median $129, Memorials.com midpoint of $87.95–$297.95 = $193, Final Gift sterling paw pendant $240]. How we calculate.
- [7] Entry-level solid 14k gold pet-ash pendants cost about 15 times entry-level sterling silver ones at the same retailer. Our estimate: $1,297.95 / $87.95 (Memorials.com starting prices). How we calculate.
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