Keeping your pet's paw print in South Salt Lake, Utah
Roughly 830 dogs and cats die in South Salt Lake 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.
- Home kit or vet-taken: your choice
- Tips for heat, humidity and cold
- Ideas for jewelry, engraving and art
South Salt Lake, Utah
Arranging a paw print around South Salt Lake
Apartment living shapes memorial choices here. Compact pieces suit a shelf or windowsill: a palm-sized urn, a plaster print of a paw, a keepsake box holding a tag and a photo, or a ring with a trace of ash sealed inside. For renters who move every year or two, anything that fits in a suitcase is easier than a stone set in the ground.
South Salt Lake is one of the most diverse cities in Utah, home to refugees and immigrants from many countries alongside long-time residents. Remembrance traditions vary widely: a candle and photo on a shelf, a small altar, prayers or a simple urn. Any of these is a good choice; the right memorial is the one that fits your family's customs and space.
Supplies are easy to find even in a small town. Air-dry modeling clay, a washable non-toxic ink pad, card stock and baby wipes are enough for a first print. A purpose-made kit is kinder for fluffy paws and cats, but it may take days to arrive, so buy one while your pet is still well rather than waiting until you need it urgently.
South Salt Lake is home to about 26,934 people, the 38th-largest of the 52 Utah communities we cover. The nearest larger centre is Salt Lake City, about 4 miles (6 km) away, which is where some providers serving South Salt Lake are based.
Families in South Salt Lake often end up using a provider from Millcreek (4 miles, a larger centre), Salt Lake City (4 miles, a larger centre) and Murray (4 miles). That is normal: crematories serve a radius, not a single town, and the drive is priced into collection.
Our estimate
9,900
Estimated dog- or cat-owning households in South Salt Lake
How we calculated this
26,934 ÷ 2.5 = 10,774 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 9,900. Homes are counted once however many pets they keep.
Our estimate
830
Estimated dog and cat losses in South Salt Lake each year
How we calculated this
9,900 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 830 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.
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.
Cremation habits in Utah and the print window
With cremation at only about 46.1%[5] for people in Utah, many pets here are laid to rest in a yard or a field. If you'd like the print to mark the spot, keep the original indoors and put a copy outside. Rain, frost and sun wear away clay and ink within a season, while an engraved stone, a metal plate or a resin cast made from a scan will stand up to years of weather.
We take the Utah rate from NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). It is a human statistic; there is no equivalent pet figure for South Salt Lake, and we would rather show a real number than invent one.
Seasons in South Salt Lake and a print that lasts
If you've bought a print kit to keep for later, store it indoors, not in the garage. In South Salt Lake, a garage can top 94°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.
Because South Salt Lake swings from 94°F summers to freezing winters, the timing of a home print is really about comfort. For an old dog who struggles in July, choose a cool evening. For a cat who spends January curled by the heater, bring the clay to them. A relaxed pet in their favorite spot gives the clearest print.
Where the money goes: the print, then the finishing
If you'd like the print framed with a lock of fur, one Northeast crematory network charges $133 for that combination and $23 for a fur clipping on its own[6]. Some water cremation providers bundle a print in too: an Arizona aquamation service includes an ink paw print in individual packages from $75 to $349[7]. In South Salt Lake, it's worth asking every provider what comes with the package before adding extras.
Rather than repeat the price table on every city page, we keep one for Utah: Utah costs. What each service includes is on the services page.
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
You don't need anyone's permission to take your pet's paw print, and prints, casts and ashes jewelry can be kept, posted or carried anywhere. The rules that matter in Utah are about burial and scattering. If you plan a home burial, take the print before you begin; if you plan to scatter, keep some ashes back for a print pendant first.
Utah keeps an official directory of local governments; use it to reach the county or city office that covers South Salt Lake.
Start with the Utah rules, which cover burial, scattering and oversight for the whole state, and treat South Salt Lake's local ordinances as a possible extra layer.
A short checklist for a clean print
- Tell your child what's happening in plain words, and ask whether they'd like to help with the print. Our guide to print-making with children suggests roles for different ages.
- 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, and tuck the original away out of harm's way.
- Come back to it later. One child wants it framed the same week; another won't look at it for months.
Turning a print into something lasting
Families with relatives in other cities, or in other countries, often want the remains shared. Tell the provider before cremation so the ashes come back in separate portions, one larger container for the main household and a few tiny vessels for others. If a portion needs to travel by mail or in luggage, ask how it should be sealed and labeled, since shipping rules differ between carriers and destinations.
there are guides for the big decisions and articles for the details, try the free planning tools, or see what other families chose in the poll results, Every option South Salt Lake families choose between is on the services page. If you live between South Salt Lake and Salt Lake City, West Jordan, Provo and Lehi, either page applies. Every other community in Utah, and all of the United States, is listed too.
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.
Where would your pet's print live?
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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
Is cremation common in Utah?
For people, yes: about 46.1%[5] of Utah deaths end in cremation, according to NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). Nobody publishes the same figure for pets, but in our experience pet choices in South Salt Lake follow the human pattern closely, so cremation is the default most families here start from.
Roughly how many pets die in South Salt Lake each year?
Our estimate is around 830. It comes from South Salt Lake's population (about 26,934), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 9,900 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
Which nearby towns can I compare with South Salt Lake?
The closest communities we cover are Millcreek (about 4 miles), Salt Lake City (about 4 miles) and Murray (about 4 miles). Providers based in those places often serve South Salt Lake too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
Does the South Salt Lake 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.
Can I make a plaster paw cast in cold weather?
Yes, but do it indoors. Plaster sets more slowly in a cold room, and if the water in it freezes before it has cured, the cast turns chalky and crumbles. Mix it with lukewarm water, let it set somewhere warm and never leave a curing cast in a car, garage or porch overnight during a South Salt Lake winter.
Can a paw print be taken after my pet has died?
Yes. A print can usually be taken in the first hours after death at home, and later by a vet or crematory before cremation. If the leg has stiffened, press the clay gently onto the paw rather than forcing the paw down. A print from a relaxed, living pet tends to be crisper, which is why many owners take one while their pet is still a healthy senior.
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] 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.
- [7] A Greener Place in Mesa, Arizona, charges $75–$349 for individual pet aquamation by weight, including an urn, nameplate and ink paw print. A Greener Place Pet Aquamation – Pricing, 2026.
- [8] 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.
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