Pet funeral services in Des Moines, Iowa
By our estimate, about 78,000 households in Des Moines have a dog or a cat, and roughly 6,500 of those pets die each year. Every one of those families decides how to say goodbye. Here's how to plan yours.
- A simple running order you can print
- Graveside and home ceremony guidance
- Help with timing around the weather
Des Moines, Iowa
How families in Des Moines say goodbye to a pet
Iowans have a reputation for being modest and getting on with things, and some people feel they shouldn't make a fuss about losing an animal. But grief for a pet can be as heavy as other losses, and children who raised a 4-H animal or grew up with a family pet may need extra time and honest answers. It's fine to take it seriously. Talking, looking at photos and remembering together all help.
A pet's farewell in Des Moines is often low-key and family-centered: a few words in the living room, a prayer, children saying goodbye and tucking a drawing in with their pet before collection. In winter, some families hold that small gathering indoors and plan a burial of the ashes or a tree planting for spring. Some providers welcome families at the cremation; if that matters to you, say so and we'll include them in the options we email.
A mid-size place like Des Moines usually has one or two crematories and a handful of in-home vets, so availability can tighten on weekends and holidays. If your pet is very ill, it's kinder to yourself to ask now what a home goodbye would involve, who would collect afterwards and whether a viewing is possible, so the day itself holds fewer decisions.
With roughly 212,086 residents, Des Moines is the largest of the 27 Iowa communities we cover.
Families in Des Moines often end up using a provider from West Des Moines (8 miles), Altoona (9 miles) and Urbandale (9 miles). That is normal: crematories serve a radius, not a single town, and the drive is priced into collection.
Our estimate
78,000
How many dog- or cat-owning households Des Moines has (estimate)
How we calculated this
212,086 ÷ 2.5 = 84,834 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 78,000. Multi-pet homes count once.
Our estimate
6,500
dog and cat deaths per year in Des Moines, our estimate
How we calculated this
78,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 6,500 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.
None of the figures on this this page are ours alone: they rest on Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science and American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry.
Local customs and your pet's farewell
In Iowa, about 63.6%[5] of people are cremated, a share that has been climbing. Pet farewells are changing in the same way. More families now hold a small ceremony at home or in a crematory's farewell room, and fewer dig a grave in the yard, especially in suburbs where lots are small or rented.
For the Iowa figure we rely on NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). Read it as a picture of local custom around death and remembrance in Des Moines rather than as pet data.
Seasons, timing and ceremonies in Des Moines
Cold weather gives you a little more time before a home farewell has to end, but it also makes outdoor goodbyes harder. With January lows near 14°F in Des Moines, keep any outdoor part short, with hats, gloves and a warm room to go back to. The words can be said indoors by the window facing the garden.
Winter farewells in Des Moines often move indoors, and that can be lovely: a fire or candles, a blanket, your pet on their own bed and the family close. If you want a symbolic outdoor moment, a single lantern placed in the snow at the spot where the grave or tree will go in spring is simple and memorable.
Pet funeral and burial prices for families in Des Moines
If you'd like the goodbye to happen at home, the vet's visit is often the biggest single cost: at-home dog euthanasia averages about $410[6] nationally, against $139[7] in a clinic. Add cremation or burial, then whatever you choose for the farewell itself. Prices in Des Moines will sit around these national figures, higher in costlier areas.
Prices for Des Moines track the wider Iowa market, so use the Iowa 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 Iowa allows for burial and scattering
Rules for ashes are usually looser than rules for a body, because cremated remains are dry, processed bone rather than tissue. That's why burying or scattering ashes is often the simpler route to a graveside or outdoor ceremony. Here are the notes for Iowa on both.
The official Iowa local government directory lists every county and city office, which is the quickest way to find who to ask in Des Moines.
The rules that apply across Iowa (home burial, scattering and who oversees pet cremation) are summarized on our Iowa page. Des Moines may add its own conditions, so check with the city or county before digging.
What to do first, and what can wait
- If the goodbye is planned, ask your vet about a home visit and book it early; in-home vets serving Des Moines can be booked up days ahead.
- Tell the vet what you'd like around it: some quiet beforehand, some afterwards, and no pickup until everyone in the family says they're ready.
- Prepare the room: your pet's bed, a blanket, soft light, phones away.
- Give each person, including children, one small job, whether that's picking a flower or reading a single sentence aloud.
- Say a few words. One memory each is plenty. Laughter is welcome.
- Plan a second gathering around the ashes' return, so anyone who missed the first can still take part.
After the farewell: ways to keep the memory close
Gray January days in central Iowa can make an empty house feel emptier, and many people find the first winter after a pet dies especially hard. Try to get outside when the sun is out, keep in touch with friends, and consider a pet loss support group or counselor if sadness lingers for weeks. Some families find it helps to pick a spring date now to plant something in their pet's memory.
run the numbers with the free planning tools, The services page is the place to compare what is included, or compare your instinct with the poll results, the guides answer the longer questions and the blog the newer ones. Close to Des Moines we also cover Ankeny, Cedar Rapids, West Des Moines and Davenport; the full list for Iowa 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 would you hold the farewell?
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What kind of goodbye feels right for your pet?
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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.
Farewell & memorial service planner
Build a simple goodbye: who, where, readings, rituals and a checklist.
Aftercare options compared
Compare private, communal and water cremation with burial on cost, timing and what comes home.
Questions people ask
When is the hardest time of year to arrange a burial in Des Moines?
January, February, March, November and December: average lows are below freezing then, and frozen ground makes a home grave slow or impossible until it thaws. The other pressure point is July, when highs around 86°F mean a body needs cooling and collecting quickly.
Which nearby towns can I compare with Des Moines?
The closest communities we cover are West Des Moines (about 8 miles), Altoona (about 9 miles) and Urbandale (about 9 miles). Providers based in those places often serve Des Moines too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
Why does the Des Moines 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 63.6%[5] of Iowa residents are cremated. There is no official pet equivalent, and inventing one would be worse than quoting a real, clearly labelled number.
How many pet owners live in Des Moines?
By our estimate, about 78,000 households in Des Moines have at least one dog or cat, and around 6,500 are lost each year. We calculate this from the city's population of about 212,086, the average household size and national ownership and lifespan figures, so treat it as a floor rather than an exact count.
Will I need to book a pet farewell in advance in Des Moines?
Going by our estimate of 78,000 dog- or cat-owning households in Des Moines, roughly 6,500 of their pets die each year, so local vets and crematories handle goodbyes every week. Collection and standard cremation rarely need long notice. In-home vet visits, viewing rooms and witnessed cremations are limited, though, so book those as soon as you know the date, particularly for weekends.
What can I send with my pet for cremation or burial?
Most crematories let a blanket, a letter, a drawing or a small soft toy go with your pet. Many ask you to remove metal tags, plastic toys and rubber collars, which don't burn cleanly, so keep those as keepsakes instead. For a garden grave, choose natural materials such as cotton, wool or untreated wood. If something must come back to you, say so before the handover, not after.
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 Iowa's cremation rate at 63.6% 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 at-home dog euthanasia at $410 (range $325-$747). CareCredit (Synchrony) - How Much Does It Cost To Euthanize a Dog? (2025 ASQ360 procedural cost study), 2025.
- [7] CareCredit's 2025 cost study put the US national average for in-clinic dog euthanasia at $139 (range $110-$253). CareCredit (Synchrony) - How Much Does It Cost To Euthanize a Dog? (2025 ASQ360 procedural cost study), 2025.
- [8] Across 15 US pet cemeteries' posted starting burial prices, the median entry price was about $600. Our estimate: median of starting prices [400,185,300,550,575,99,660.44,730,740,850,850,800,850,600,600]. How we calculate.
Tell us about the goodbye you're planning
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.