A lasting stone for your pet in Georgetown
By our count, roughly 250 Georgetown families lose a dog or cat every year. A memorial stone is one of the few decisions with no deadline, so here's what to know before you order.
- Wording that fits a small stone
- Flush, raised or with an ashes compartment
- No pressure: a stone can wait until you're ready
Georgetown, Delaware
Pet memorials in Georgetown: the local picture
Redden State Forest, with its sandy trails and tall loblolly pines just north of town, is a place many local families know well. Scattering remains on state land usually needs permission, so ask the forest office before you go. Setting a biodegradable urn under a young pine or flowering shrub in your own yard lets the memorial grow where you can visit it every day.
Georgetown's best-known tradition is Return Day, held two days after each general election, when candidates ride together around The Circle and a hatchet is literally buried in sand. That sense of ritual carries into how some families remember a pet: a small ceremony, a marker in the garden, a candle lit on an anniversary. Whatever object you choose, confirm its size and total price first.
Delivery to a rural address can add cost and time. Freight carriers sometimes charge extra for residential or remote addresses and may deliver to the end of a long driveway only. When you order for Georgetown, ask about the delivery method up front, or arrange to collect the stone from a depot or maker in a larger center such as Georgetown.
About 8,291 people live in Georgetown, which makes it the 8th-largest of the 11 Delaware communities we cover.
Families in Georgetown often end up using a provider from Millsboro (8 miles), Seaford (12 miles) and Milford (15 miles). That is normal: crematories serve a radius, not a single town, and the drive is priced into collection.
Our estimate
3,050
How many dog- or cat-owning households Georgetown has (estimate)
How we calculated this
8,291 ÷ 2.5 = 3,316 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 3,050. Homes are counted once however many pets they keep.
Our estimate
250
dog and cat deaths per year in Georgetown, our estimate
How we calculated this
3,050 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 250 a year. Treat it as a minimum.
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 Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science and American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry, and both are worth a look if you want the detail.
Grave or ashes? The local habit in Delaware
Cremation covers roughly 59.7%[5] of human deaths in Delaware, and burial much of the rest, so it's common for two people in the same household to want different things. Cremation followed by burying the ashes under a stone often settles it: there's a grave to visit for one person and ashes that can travel for the other.
Source for the Delaware number: NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). Nobody publishes a pet cremation rate for Georgetown, so the human figure is the best local signal available.
Choosing a stone that suits Georgetown's seasons
Snow and salt are both hard on stone in Georgetown. A flush marker disappears under snow from January, February and December, so add a small stake or a tall plant nearby if you want to find it easily. Keep de-icing salt away from the memorial: salt draws water into stone and speeds up flaking, especially on limestone, marble and concrete.
Georgetown winters are the real test for a memorial stone. Average lows drop below freezing in January, February and December, and every freeze-thaw cycle lets water into porous stone, freeze, expand and pry off flakes, often from the edges of engraved letters first. Dense granite shrugs this off; slate, sandstone, concrete and cast resin can crack within a few winters.
Budgeting for the stone, lettering and delivery
If you want a picture on the stone, budget for it separately. A laser-etched portrait on a full headstone costs about $500–$800[6] from monument engravers, while small photo-etched granite pet markers from online makers start from $159.99[7]. Ask makers serving Georgetown for a proof before they etch, and compare total prices including delivery.
For a line-by-line price table, see the Delaware overview; for what's included in each option, see our services.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Where a pet stone can go in Delaware
If you own your home, you can usually place a garden stone wherever you like; the stricter rules concern burying a body, not marking a spot. If you rent, ask your landlord before burying anything or setting a stone in concrete, and choose a stone you can lift and take with you. Below are the burial and scattering notes we have for Delaware.
Delaware keeps an official directory of local governments; use it to reach the county or city office that covers Georgetown.
The rules that apply across Delaware (home burial, scattering and who oversees pet cremation) are summarized on our Delaware page. Georgetown may add its own conditions, so check with the city or county before digging.
A step-by-step plan for your situation
- Decide whether the stone should travel with you. Renters and anyone likely to move soon should choose something they can lift.
- Pick a spot you'll see every day, from a window or the back door, rather than a far corner you rarely visit.
- Keep it clear of pipes and roots. Have buried utilities located before you put a spade in, and stay well back from the base of any tree.
- Order a stone rated for outdoor use in your climate, with sandblasted lettering at least an eighth of an inch deep.
- Check the proof carefully. Names, dates and punctuation can't be changed once the stone is cut.
- Install it, then look after it lightly: a soft brush and plain water once or twice a year is plenty.
Around the stone: plants, benches and small rituals
Families in Georgetown sometimes choose a memorial that fits their own traditions, such as a small home altar with a photo, a candle and a keepsake box, or a cross or engraved stone in the garden. Jewelry holding a little ash and paw print casts are popular too. Ask each maker how much ash a piece needs and when it will be finished.
or see how other readers answered in our polls, Compare every option on our services page, run the numbers with the free planning tools, browse in-depth guides or recent articles. If you live between Georgetown and Dover, Wilmington, Smyrna and Newark, either page applies. Every other community in Delaware, 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.
Where would your pet's stone go?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Which stone would you choose for your pet's marker?
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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.
Memorial stone planner
Plan size, material and engraving length so your wording fits the stone.
Memorial tree finder
Pick a tree for a planting urn that suits your climate, space and pet.
Questions people ask
Can a provider from a neighbouring town collect from Georgetown?
Usually yes. Millsboro is about 8 miles away, Seaford is about 12 miles away and Milford is about 15 miles away, all inside a normal collection radius. Get the mileage written into the quote so there is no surprise on the day.
Roughly how many pets die in Georgetown each year?
Our estimate is around 250. It comes from Georgetown's population (about 8,291), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 3,050 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
Is cremation common in Delaware?
For people, yes: about 59.7%[5] of Delaware 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 Georgetown follow the human pattern closely, so cremation is the default most families here start from.
How does Georgetown's weather affect pet aftercare?
July is the hottest month in Georgetown, with average highs around 88°F, so prompt collection matters most then. Average lows drop below freezing in January, February and December, which can make digging a grave hard until spring.
When is the best time to install a pet memorial stone in Georgetown?
Wait until the ground has thawed and dried out a little, usually late spring, or install in early fall before the first hard freeze. A fresh grave also needs a month or two to settle. Until then, a temporary marker holds the spot, and the engraved stone can wait safely indoors.
Is a memorial stone a good idea if my pet was cremated?
Yes, and cremation gives you more freedom. The stone can sit over a small portion of buried ashes, hold ashes in a sealed compartment or simply mark a favorite spot, and there's no grave to settle, so you can set it straight away. You can also keep most of the ashes indoors and bury just a spoonful.
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 Delaware's cremation rate at 59.7% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] A laser-etched portrait on a headstone costs about $500–$800, and a porcelain photo $200–$600. Memorials.com – Headstone Engraving Cost, 2026.
- [7] Photo-etched granite pet markers at The Comfort Company start at $159.99. The Comfort Company – Pet memorial stones, 2026.
- [8] Photo-etched or flat granite pet markers start at about $158–$160 at two US sellers. Our estimate: Memorials.com flat granite from $157.95; Comfort Co. photo granite from $159.99. How we calculate.
Ask for pet stone options near Georgetown
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.