Pet Owner Alert

There are so many choices for after-life care, it’s difficult to know how to choose the best option. We want you to have all the information up front before you make your decision. Our goal is to be completely transparent and honest; it’s how we’ve conducted business for close to 30 years.

Euthanasia and cremation aren’t easy subjects. None of us want to imagine life without our beloved companion animals, but bringing this information to light is meant to educate. Ultimately, you will need to make decisions regarding your pet’s welfare. Please use the following information to make an informed decision. To ask questions. To get what you actually expect. You are your pet’s advocate, from beginning to end. Forewarned is forearmed.

Brokered Cremation

In the heat of the moment, we can’t think. The pain and anguish are too fresh and raw. When your companion animal passes, via euthanasia at a veterinary hospital, or quietly at home, most of us turn to our veterinary practice to handle the cremation details.

Cremations through veterinary hospitals are handled by third-party brokers. Your veterinary practice is staffed by folks doing everything they can to keep your pet healthy and maintain a good quality of life, but they aren’t in the business of cremation.

It’s the same for people, though we don’t tend to realize it. Your doctor is there to manage your health, not to handle post-life details such as funerals and cremations. And we wouldn’t expect them to do so.

But we don’t think twice when the unthinkable happens and we leave the office, distraught over the loss of our faithful friend. We should.

Third-party brokers gather deceased animals from a set geographic area and transport to out-of-town facilities for cremation. There is no oversight. No regulation. There are no laws or legal requirements in the state of Pennsylvania pertaining to pet cremation or burial services. Nor are there any protections in place to shield the consumer from misleading practices. Animals are considered property, and are treated as such.

Trigger Warning: The video below illustrates the reality of brokered cremation. Please use caution as some may find the images disturbing.

Knowledge is Protection

Educate yourself now to protect yourself, and your pet, in the future. Whatever services you choose, including ours, make certain they are fully documented.

We have included our form below, as well as general forms that can, and should, be used in every instance. The forms detail what services will be provided and the costs involved, as well as specific questions about location, transportation, name of cremation facility, and when and how your pet’s cremains will be returned to you. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to call our office for further information.

More than anything, we want to give you the opportunity to make certain your companion animal is treated with the respect and compassion it deserves, and you expect.

The struggle to educate the public is ongoing. Rob Lauver has been a vocal animal advocate for more than three decades. Following a heartbreaking experience of his own after the death of one of his beloved dogs, he’s campaigned relentlessly to change and improve the industry. His work is well-documented in Ashes to Ashes, Trust to Dust, and he was instrumental in exposing fraudulent practices in Chicago. We are more than willing to share both the booklet and the DVD of the Chicago investigation, just call the office and ask. 

As pet owners, we have to be our own advocates. It’s a matter of educating ourselves, speaking out and using that information to make the best decision.

Certified Private Pet Cremation Full Disclosure Agreement (arranged and performed by direct cremation provider)

Third-Party (Veterinarian Arranged) Private Pet Cremation Full Disclosure (arranged but NOT performed by veterinarian)

Memorial Pet Cremation Full Disclosure Agreement (arranged and performed by PA State Pet Memorial, Mechanicsburg, PA)

Third-Party (Veterinarian Arranged) Communal/Disposal Pet Cremation Full Disclosure Agreement (arranged but NOT performed by veterinarian)

Private Pet Burial Full Disclosure Agreement (arranged and performed by pet cemetery)