The love and attachment people have with their pets can lead to a great void in their lives when their beloved animals die. 

But a relatively new—yet old—method of preserving the remains of their beloved ones can offer some solace to their owners. 

Aquamation is a means of cremating pets through the use of water rather than traditional flame-based cremation. A new business in West Valley City is providing that service to pet owners who want to keep some tangible remains of their furry (and not so furry) companions. 

Merrit Rinard launched Utah Pet Aquamation in July at 2052 W. 2200 South. 

“The word is still spreading. I’ve had some customers reaching out specifically looking for aquamation. I’ve had other people say, ‘I’ve never heard about this until I was looking for cremation and I found your business,’” Rinard said. 

The process involves alkaline hydrolysis to mimic what takes place in natural decomposition in the soil. A gentle water flow with the right alkalinity and  heated temperatures in a small steel vessel combine to more naturally break down the pet’s remains.

Similar to cremation, the only solid remains are the bones which are processed into ash and are provided to the pet owners as a keepsake. The owners can get back 20% more of their animals’ remains than they would with traditional fire-based cremation. 

Rinard says the journey to what is now her now 8-month-old business began with the death of her dog Trapper from kidney disease at the relatively young age of 6. “It was very, very hard for me,” she recalled. 

Rinard became aware of aquamation when she lived in Texas and searched for such a facility in northern Utah when she moved here. Finding none, she decided to start her own business. “I knew it was something that spoke to me because I was looking for a gentler option” than flame-based cremation, she said. “All we’ve ever had was you bury your pet in the yard or flame cremation and that’s it.” The “gentler option” of water cremation can also be easier emotionally on the grieving pet owner than the perceived harshness and finality of flame cremation. 

Rinard says there are other benefits to the process as well. Since there is no burning, there are no emissions into the atmosphere and the overall carbon footprint is only one-tenth that of flame-based cremation. The procedure uses very little energy and the wastewater can simply go down the drain and into the sewer system like any other domestic uses of the resource. Some water purveyors treat the used water for reuse in irrigation.  

“There are different reasons why people gravitate toward (aquamation),” Rinard said. “Some people are very much into the ‘eco’ aspect. Other people, it’s just emotionally gentler for them to think of their dog in water.” 

“I think some people just like the idea of water over fire.” 

Megan Max lost her little Yorkshire Terrier in January at the age of 5. “It was a tragic event,” the Salt Lake City resident said of her beloved Chacco (pronounced Chock-o) while walking her other two existing canines. 

Max said she wanted a way to part with Chacco yet keep some part of him at an affordable price. “I didn’t know about aquamation,” she said and felt it was the way to go when she learned more about it from Rinard. “The idea of a water process instead of flames seems more gentle.” 

“I have a bag of his teeth,” which Max is thankful were preserved through aquamation rather than incinerated through cremation. “It’s morbid, but it’s a little more comforting.” 

Aquamation isn’t limited to just dogs and cats. Rinard says creatures up to 400 pounds can undergo the process, even pets you’d classify as more exotic, like snakes, fish, hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits, turtles and birds. A guinea pig, for instance, can undergo aquamation for about $120 and it goes up from there based on the size of the animal.

Aquamation was patented in 1888 and has long been used by the medical industry, but more so for animals in the last few years. 

Utah Pet Aquamation is the only such business in northern Utah. The next closest known service of that type is in St. George. However, human aquamation has been offered by Tate Mortuary in Tooele since 2018 when Utah became the 16th state to legalize the practice. Now, 27 states allow it. Today, there are about 400 animal aquamation machines around the world. 

More information is available at www.utahpetaquamation.com. λ