Paw print keepsakes in Magna
Roughly 1,100 dogs and cats die in Magna each year, by our estimate, and many owners only think of a paw print afterwards. Here's how to make sure yours is taken in time.
- Ask for a print when you book
- Help for paws, noses and hooves
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Magna, Utah
Who takes paw prints in Magna
Magna has a strong sense of local history, with its restored Main Street storefronts and long-time families who remember the mill years. Some residents like a memorial with that same grounded feel: a simple engraved stone, a cast-metal plaque or a handmade urn rather than something flashy. Others prefer a small piece of jewelry to carry every day. Both make sense.
Outdoor pieces in Magna take a beating from dry summer sun, gusty wind off the lake and hard winter freezes. Natural stone and bronze keep their looks for decades; lightweight resin and painted concrete often crack within a few seasons. A living memorial is another route, such as a native sagebrush, a rabbitbrush or a small tree placed where you can see the Oquirrh foothills from the kitchen window.
If your pet will travel to a crematory near Salt Lake City, the journey can take a day or two, depending on collection schedules. Many crematories offer a print at intake, which is a useful backup. But if you can, take your own before your pet leaves Magna. That way you have it in your hands and don't depend on anyone else remembering.
Magna is home to about 35,401 people, the 33rd-largest of the 52 Utah communities we cover. The nearest larger centre is Salt Lake City, about 16 miles (25 km) away, which is where some providers serving Magna are based.
Nearby, we also have local pages for West Valley City (10 miles, a larger centre), Kearns (12 miles) and Taylorsville (14 miles), which can help if your vet or the provider you prefer is based there.
Our estimate
13,000
Estimated dog- or cat-owning households in Magna
How we calculated this
35,401 ÷ 2.5 = 14,160 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 13,000. Homes are counted once however many pets they keep.
Our estimate
1,100
dog and cat deaths per year in Magna, our estimate
How we calculated this
13,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 1,100 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.
Sources for the statistics above: American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry and Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science.
Cremation habits in Utah and the print window
Burial is still the familiar path in Utah; cremation covers only about 46.1%[5] of the dead there, and some owners worry that making a keepsake of a pet's paw will seem odd to the neighbors. It isn't odd at all. A print is a quiet, gentle memorial, not unlike keeping a curl from a baby's first haircut. Make it for yourself, and share it only if and when you want to.
The Utah figure comes from NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). It describes people, not pets, so read it as a sign of local attitudes rather than a pet statistic.
Seasons in Magna and a print that lasts
In the hot months, take prints in a cool, air-conditioned room and dry the paw first so ink doesn't smudge. In January, when lows average about 24°F, warm the clay in your hands and keep plaster work indoors. A pet who has been in cold storage will have firm pads, so press the clay gently onto the paw instead of the other way round.
Home burial in Magna runs to two different clocks. In January, February and December, frozen ground can make digging impossible, and some families keep their pet in a vet's cold storage until spring. In the heat of July, burial needs to happen quickly. Either way, the print belongs at the very start: before your pet goes into storage in winter, and within the first hours in summer.
Paw print costs around Magna, line by line
Compared with the cremation itself, a print is a small line on the bill. Private dog cremation averages about $260[6] in the US, while paw-print add-ons at crematories range from about $10 to $76[7]. The bigger spend comes later, if you choose jewelry: a paw-print bangle bracelet from one crematory network costs $385[8]. Use the table to plan what fits your budget in Magna.
We keep the detailed Utah price table on one page so it stays current: see Utah prices.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
What Utah allows after your pet dies
Some towns and councils in Utah run a collection service for pets who die at home, usually without returning any ashes. If that's the route you take, a print will be the only keepsake you have, so take it before you call. The notes below cover the other options: home burial, pet cemeteries and scattering ashes.
To find your county or city office in Utah, start with the official Utah local government directory.
Start with the Utah rules, which cover burial, scattering and oversight for the whole state, and treat Magna's local ordinances as a possible extra layer.
Getting a paw print in Magna, step by step
- For a horse, book the farrier to trim and clean the hoof first. Pick out the sole and dry it well.
- Press the hoof into a thick slab of clay resting on a board, or coat the sole in non-toxic paint and set it down on stiff card. Ask a helper to keep the leg still while you do it.
- Keep the last shoe and a length of tail or mane hair, which many horse owners have braided or set into resin.
- For a bird or a very small pet, use very soft clay or inkless paper and the lightest pressure. Tiny toes show best in clay.
- For a fluffy cat or rabbit, an inkless kit avoids ink on fur they'll groom later, and clay shows the long shape of a rabbit's foot.
- Dry and store every print indoors, and photograph it so a maker can work from the image.
Remembering your pet through their print
If several relatives want some of the ashes, raise it before cremation so the provider can return separate portions. Another approach is one main urn for the household plus a handful of tiny keepsakes, each holding a spoonful, for siblings or grandparents who live elsewhere. That leaves most of the remains together for a shelf, a garden or a scattering trip later in the year.
or see what other families chose in the poll results, See what each option includes on our services page, the planning tools turn your pet's details into figures, go deeper with the guides or catch up on recent articles. If you live between Magna and Provo, West Jordan, West Valley City and Salt Lake City, either page applies. Every other community in Utah, and all of the United States, is listed too.
Reader polls
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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 do Utah attitudes to cremation compare?
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) puts the Utah human cremation rate at about 46.1%[5]. We show it on the Magna 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.
Does the Magna climate change what I should do first?
Only the timing. In July, with highs near 94°F, cool the body and book collection the same day. In January, February 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.
Which nearby towns can I compare with Magna?
The closest communities we cover are West Valley City (about 10 miles), Kearns (about 12 miles) and Taylorsville (about 14 miles). Providers based in those places often serve Magna too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
How many pet owners live in Magna?
By our estimate, about 13,000 households in Magna have at least one dog or cat, and around 1,100 are lost each year. We calculate this from the city's population of about 35,401, the average household size and national ownership and lifespan figures, so treat it as a floor rather than an exact count.
What is a silver-clay paw print, and what does it cost?
Silver clay is a modeling clay made of fine silver particles and a binder. A jeweler presses your pet's paw, or a copy of it, into the clay, dries it and fires it in a kiln, which burns off the binder and leaves solid silver with the pad shapes intact. A Northeast US crematory network prices a clay or silver-clay paw print at $76[9]. Ask whether the piece is a direct impression or a scaled copy, and whether it comes as a pendant or a flat token.
How do I stop an ink paw print from smudging?
Dry the paw with a towel first, tape the card to a hard surface and press straight down with steady pressure, then lift straight up without sliding. Too much ink blurs the pads, so dab lightly. Take three or four prints and keep the clearest. Let the ink dry fully before touching it, especially in humid weather.
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 Utah's cremation rate at 46.1% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] CareCredit's 2025 cost study put the US national average for private dog cremation at $260 (range $206-$473). CareCredit (Synchrony) - How Much Does It Cost To Euthanize a Dog? (2025 ASQ360 procedural cost study), 2025.
- [7] Paw-print add-ons at US crematories have a median price of about $32, from $10 to $76. Our estimate: median of [$10 clay (AGP), $15 laser engraving (AGP), $49 ink (Final Gift), $76 clay (Final Gift)]. How we calculate.
- [8] A paw-print bangle bracelet costs $385 and a cremation cuff bracelet $125 at Final Gift. Final Gift Pet Memorial Center – Memorial Products, 2026.
- [9] Final Gift charges $49 for ink paw prints, $76 for a clay or silver-clay paw print, $111 framed, and $133 framed with a fur clipping; a fur clipping alone costs $23. Final Gift Pet Memorial Center – Memorial Products, 2026.
Get paw print options in Magna
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