Marking your pet's resting place in New Hope
By our count, roughly 640 New Hope 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.
- Granite, slate, river rock and cast stone compared
- Setting fees and cemetery rules in plain words
- Options you can lift and move if you relocate
New Hope, Minnesota
What getting a pet stone made in New Hope is like
Renters may not be able to place a marker outdoors, and even homeowners face ground too hard to dig from November until April. Indoor memorials solve both problems and move easily when a lease ends. If a garden stone is the goal, a solid piece of granite or bronze seated on crushed rock stands up to frost heave far better than cast concrete.
Some New Hope families keep an urn at home and take a portion to a relative's cabin, scattering it there with the landowner's consent. Others seal a thimbleful into a pendant and bury the remainder under a lilac in a parent's yard. If dividing is likely, or you'd like a pressed clay impression of a paw, say so on your very first call.
Human cemeteries in towns like New Hope generally don't accept pet burials, though a few have added pet sections or allow ashes in some circumstances. If you want your pet near a family plot, ask the cemetery office directly rather than assuming. Otherwise, a private stone on family land or at a regional pet cemetery is the usual route.
About 20,807 people live in New Hope, which makes it the 60th-largest of the 67 Minnesota communities we cover. Minneapolis, roughly 7 miles off, is the closest larger centre, and a share of the providers who cover New Hope run from there.
New Hope sits within easy reach of Crystal (1 miles), Golden Valley (3 miles) and Plymouth (4 miles, a larger centre). A provider based in any of them will usually collect from New Hope; ask what the mileage adds to the bill.
Our estimate
7,650
New Hope: dog- or cat-owning households, our estimate
How we calculated this
20,807 ÷ 2.5 = 8,323 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 7,650. A household with several pets counts once.
Our estimate
640
dog and cat deaths per year in New Hope, our estimate
How we calculated this
7,650 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 640 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.
The numbers above come from American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry and Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science, if you'd like to read the original sources.
How Minnesota remembers its dead, and its pets
About 68.5%[5] of people in Minnesota are cremated, a share that has been rising for years. Many families here grew up visiting headstones in a churchyard or town cemetery, and a stone for a pet can feel like a natural extension of that habit. Others prefer something less formal, such as an engraved river rock in a flower bed.
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) is where the Minnesota figure comes from. It counts people; we use it because attitudes to cremating a pet in New Hope tend to follow attitudes to cremation generally.
Which stones survive the weather in New Hope
Order in winter and set in spring is a good rhythm for New Hope. Mortar and construction adhesive don't cure properly in the cold, and January lows around 7°F are far below what they need. If your stone has a separate base or a glued plaque, ask the maker to assemble it in the workshop rather than on a cold day in your yard.
Cold snaps in New Hope, when lows average around 7°F in January, can crack stones that hold water. Stones with an ashes cavity need a good seal so water doesn't collect inside and freeze. If yours has a screw plate or plug, check it in the fall, and ask the maker whether the stone is rated for outdoor use in freezing climates.
Stone, engraving and setting: the real prices
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 New Hope for a proof before they etch, and compare total prices including delivery.
Rather than repeat the price table on every city page, we keep one for Minnesota: Minnesota costs. What each service includes is on the services page.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Permissions worth checking in Minnesota
Some human cemeteries now have a pet section or accept a pet's ashes in a family plot, while many still refuse animals entirely. If you'd like your pet near relatives, ask the cemetery office for its written policy on pets, ashes and marker sizes before buying anything. Below is what we know about pet burial and scattering in Minnesota.
Minnesota keeps an official directory of local governments; use it to reach the county or city office that covers New Hope.
Home burial and scattering are governed at the Minnesota level first; our Minnesota rules summary has the detail. Then check whether New Hope or your HOA adds anything.
Ordering a pet memorial stone, step by step
- Check the rules before you buy. If the stone is going to a pet cemetery, ask for their marker rules. At home, check any HOA or lease terms.
- Measure the space. Note the width of the bed, how the mower passes and where the stone will be seen from.
- Pick a size and style: a flat flush marker suits grass, a raised one suits a border, an upright one looks like a classic headstone, and a hollow one can keep ashes inside.
- Choose a photo if you want one. Send the full-size original, shot outdoors in natural light, where the face takes up most of the picture.
- Compare a local monument company with an online maker. Get the same four things from both: which stone they use, how deep they cut the letters, how long it takes and what it costs all in.
- Plan delivery and lifting. Heavy granite may come by freight to the curb, so line up a helper or a hand truck.
Remembering your pet beside the stone
Because so many New Hope households live in apartments or small ramblers, memorials here are usually sized to match: a palm-sized urn, a photo urn tucked on the bookshelf, a charm on a necklace. The crematory's plain box keeps cremated remains safe indefinitely, which means nobody has to shop for anything during those first raw days, and some families wait until an anniversary to choose.
Our services overview lays out every option side by side, the guides answer the longer questions and the blog the newer ones, or see what other families chose in the poll results, use the free tools before you ring anyone. You can also browse every city in the United States. Nearby, we also cover Duluth, Minneapolis, Rochester and Bloomington, and every city in Minnesota.
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?
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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
How do Minnesota attitudes to cremation compare?
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) puts the Minnesota human cremation rate at about 68.5%[5]. We show it on the New Hope page because pet aftercare choices tend to track it: where cremation is normal for people, communal and private pet cremation are both easy to find.
Does the New Hope climate change what I should do first?
Only the timing. In July, with highs near 82°F, cool the body and book collection the same day. In January, February, March, November and December, when lows sit below freezing, a home burial may have to wait for a thaw, so cremation with ashes returned keeps your options open.
Is New Hope big enough to have several pet aftercare providers?
Probably, on the numbers. By our estimate about 7,650 New Hope households keep a dog or cat and around 640 lose one each year, which is enough steady demand to support more than one provider. We derive that from population (about 20,807), household size and national ownership and lifespan figures.
Which nearby towns can I compare with New Hope?
The closest communities we cover are Crystal (about 1 miles), Golden Valley (about 3 miles) and Plymouth (about 4 miles). Providers based in those places often serve New Hope too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
What do people usually engrave on a pet memorial stone?
Most choose the pet's name and years, plus one short line: a nickname, a place they loved or a phrase the family always said. A paw print or small outline is a popular alternative to words. Read the wording out loud, check the spelling with someone else and keep it short enough to read from the path.
Can I add a second pet's name to an existing memorial stone?
Often, yes, if there's room and the stone is suitable. Many monument engravers can cut new lettering on site or in the workshop, and matching the original typeface and depth is easiest if you know who made the stone. If you're ordering now and expect to add a name later, ask for blank space to be left below the first inscription.
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 Minnesota's cremation rate at 68.5% 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] Opening and closing the grave makes up 33–47% of a whole-body pet burial at a natural burial ground. Our estimate: $250/$750 (small) to $450/$950 (large). How we calculate.
Ask for pet stone options near New Hope
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.