Paw print keepsakes in Everett: timing, methods and costs
About 3,500 households in Everett 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.
- Take the print before cremation
- Clay, ink or cast, explained simply
- Published prices, no guesswork
Everett, Washington
How owners in Everett get a paw print
Many Everett households have a small yard or a balcony rather than a big garden, and most choose something that sits on a bookshelf or rail: a little urn, a pendant or a paw print in a shadow box. If you plan an outdoor stone or planter, the constant winter damp means moss and algae grow quickly, so choose a hard stone or sealed finish that is easy to clean.
Close to four in five Washington residents are cremated, among the highest shares in the country, so an urn on the shelf raises no eyebrows in Everett. Some Everett families choose a memorial tree, since the region grows them easily, while others keep ashes in a small urn at home. There is no deadline for deciding; ashes can be stored safely.
Some crematories and keepsake makers serving Everett are based a drive away, around Seattle or along main roads out of town. That's normal, and it doesn't stop you getting a print. Clay prints travel perfectly well once they're dry, and most engravers, jewelers and artists work from a clear photo or scan, so the original never needs to leave your home.
Everett's population is around 113,567, the 7th-largest of the 67 Washington communities we cover. The nearest larger centre is Seattle, about 26 miles (42 km) away, which is where some providers serving Everett are based.
If you want to compare providers, look at Lake Stevens (5 miles), Mukilteo (6 miles) and Marysville (7 miles). Distance matters because pickup fees and the time until the ashes come back both grow with the drive.
Our estimate
42,000
How many dog- or cat-owning households Everett has (estimate)
How we calculated this
113,567 ÷ 2.5 = 45,427 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 42,000. Homes are counted once however many pets they keep.
Our estimate
3,500
dog and cat deaths per year in Everett, our estimate
How we calculated this
42,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 3,500 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.
We built the this numbers from American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry and Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science, and both are worth a look if you want the detail.
How Washington thinks about cremation, and why prints matter
Cremation is the norm for people in Washington (about 79.1%[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.
The Washington percentage above is from Direct Cremate (citing CANA) (2024) and refers to human funerals. Treat it as context for Everett, not as a count of pets.
When the weather works against clay and ink
Mild weather gives you choices that colder or hotter places don't. You can make a concrete stepping stone with your pet's paw pressed in almost any month, plant around it, or set a cast print into the garden where they used to lie. If you're not ready to decide, take the print in clay or ink now and plan the outdoor piece later.
Damp winters in Everett are easy on people but can be hard on stored keepsakes. Clay prints kept in a garage or a cardboard box can pick up mildew, and ink on paper can develop brown foxing spots. Keep prints in a living space, not a basement or shed, and store any you're not displaying in an acid-free box with a sachet of silica gel, especially through November.
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 Everett 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.
We keep the detailed Washington price table on one page so it stays current: see Washington prices.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
What the law in Washington does and doesn't cover
Some towns and councils in Washington 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 Washington, start with the official Washington local government directory.
For Washington's rules on burying a pet at home or scattering ashes, see the Washington guide. Local rules in Everett can be stricter than the state's, especially in homeowners' associations and rentals.
What to do first, and what can wait
- Decide who will take the print: you, your vet, or the crematory when your pet arrives. Whoever does it earliest gives you the most say over the result.
- 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 at the same time; many providers offer one with 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 and we'll reply by email with options.
Shelf, wall or garden: where the print ends up
With the Cascades to the east and the Olympics across the Sound, Everett families often link memorials to a place: a stone from a favorite beach, a little ash taken to a mountain trailhead, or a photo of Mount Baker on a clear day. If you want to divide ashes among family members, ask for a set of matching small keepsakes.
Our services overview lays out every option side by side, go deeper with the guides or catch up on recent articles, try the free planning tools, or see what other families chose in the poll results. You can also browse every city in the United States. Nearby, we also cover Vancouver, Tacoma, Spokane and Seattle, and every city in Washington.
Reader polls
What would you choose?
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When did (or will) you take your pet's print?
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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
Roughly how many pets die in Everett each year?
Our estimate is around 3,500. It comes from Everett's population (about 113,567), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 42,000 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
Does the Everett climate change what I should do first?
Only the timing. In August, with highs near 77°F, cool the body and book collection the same day. Winters here are mild enough that burial or scattering is possible in any month.
Is cremation common in Washington?
For people, yes: about 79.1%[5] of Washington deaths end in cremation, according to Direct Cremate (citing CANA) (2024). Nobody publishes the same figure for pets, but in our experience pet choices in Everett follow the human pattern closely, so cremation is the default most families here start from.
Can a provider from a neighbouring town collect from Everett?
Usually yes. Lake Stevens is about 5 miles away, Mukilteo is about 6 miles away and Marysville is about 7 miles away, all inside a normal collection radius. Get the mileage written into the quote so there is no surprise on the day.
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.
Should I take a paw print while my senior pet is still alive?
If you can, yes. A relaxed living pet usually gives the clearest print, and you can take as many as you like without pressure. It can also give anticipatory grief something useful to do; in an RSPCA survey, 75.4%[10] of bereaved owners said they grieved before their pet died. Choose a calm, good day and keep the session short.
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] Washington had a 79.1% cremation rate in 2024, among the highest in the US. Direct Cremate (citing CANA), 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.
- [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.
- [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.
- [10] 75.4% of RSPCA pet-loss survey respondents experienced anticipatory grief before their pet died. RSPCA — Pet Loss Survey Results, 2026.
Tell us about your pet's print
Tell us what you need and where you are. We'll reply by email with clear options and prices so you can decide in your own time.