Saying goodbye to your cat in Apple Valley
Around 770 Apple Valley families say goodbye to a cat every year, by our estimate. Here's what cremation costs locally, how it works and what to ask first.
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Apple Valley, Minnesota
Cat cremation in Apple Valley: how it usually works
Apple Valley grew up in the 1960s and after on open land in western Dakota County, about 16 miles south of Saint Paul, and most of it is still quiet residential streets of ramblers, split-levels and townhomes laid out around Cedar Avenue and Highway 77. Because it is mostly single-family housing with driveways, collection is usually straightforward. South metro services include the city; ask for an all-in written price.
Apple Valley residents have memories on the eastern trails of Lebanon Hills, around Farquar Lake, or in the neighborhood parks tucked between the subdivisions. City and county parkland each come with their own policies on ashes, so ask the right office first. A shady spot in your own yard or a container of perennials on the patio needs no one's permission.
If the crematory serving Apple Valley only collects from your vet once a week, you may need to keep your cat at home for a few days. Wrapped in a towel, then sealed in a strong plastic bag, a cat keeps well in a chest freezer, and your vet may offer theirs. It sounds hard, but it's common practice in rural areas and doesn't affect cremation or any keepsakes you'd like.
Apple Valley is home to about 55,248 people, the 17th-largest of the 67 Minnesota communities we cover. The nearest larger centre is Saint Paul, about 16 miles (25 km) away, which is where some providers serving Apple Valley are based.
Our pages for Burnsville (4 miles), Eagan (5 miles) and Lakeville (5 miles) describe the same choices from those towns' point of view, and the providers overlap, so a quote from one often covers Apple Valley as well.
Our estimate
8,600
Apple Valley: cat-owning households, our estimate
How we calculated this
55,248 ÷ 2.5 = 22,099 households; × 39% (cat) = 8,600. Homes are counted once however many pets they keep.
Our estimate
770
cat deaths per year in Apple Valley, our estimate
How we calculated this
8,600 cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 770 a year. A floor, not a ceiling.
39%[1]
39% of US households own a cat, which is about 53 million households.
11.18 years[2]
US cats seen at Banfield hospitals have an average life expectancy at birth of 11.18 years.
68.5%[3]
The NFDA projected Minnesota's cremation rate at 68.5% for 2024.
clinic $158; home $359; cremation $180; burial $566[4]
CareCredit's 2025 study put US cat euthanasia at $158 in clinic and $359 at home, cat cremation at $180 and cat cemetery burial at $566.
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.
Why cremation is familiar in Minnesota, or isn't
Cremation is chosen for about 68.5%[3] of people in Minnesota, but plenty of households here have always buried their cats under a favorite tree. Both are loving choices. We'd only suggest choosing on purpose rather than by default: find out what each option costs and involves, then decide what fits your cat, your home and your plans.
The Minnesota figure comes from NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). It describes people, not pets, so read it as a sign of local attitudes rather than a pet statistic.
Timing your cat's aftercare in Apple Valley's climate
If you're driving your cat to the vet or crematory yourself in winter, the cold car helps. Lay your cat in a lined box or carrier on the back seat and drive carefully. In January, when lows average about 9°F, check the roads before you set off, and don't feel you have to go that day if conditions are poor. Your cat will keep safely in the cold.
With average lows at or below freezing for about 5 months a year, Apple Valley has a long stretch when the ground is too hard to dig, and frost can heave a shallow grave. A cat's grave needs to be deep enough to keep foxes and other animals away, which is hard work in frozen soil. Cremating now and burying the ashes later means a much smaller hole, almost anywhere you like, once the ground softens.
Cat cremation costs around Apple Valley
Where you live in the US moves the price. Pet care spending in the Seattle metro ran more than 30% above the national average in early 2025[5], while San Antonio, St Louis and Atlanta sat below it[6]. In Apple Valley, use the table as a guide, then ask local providers for an itemized total rather than relying on a national average.
Put another way: around 770 cats die in Apple Valley each year (our estimate), and private cremation averages clinic $158; home $359; cremation $180; burial $566[4] nationally. That adds up to roughly $0.1 million a year locally, which is why prices and packages differ so much from one provider to the next.
For a line-by-line price table, see the Minnesota overview; for what's included in each option, see our services.
Free tool
Cremation cost calculator
Estimate a realistic price range for your pet's size, location and the type of cremation.
Local rules in Minnesota
Rules about pets after death are set locally, so it's worth knowing the basics for Minnesota before you decide. Cremation itself is straightforward everywhere; burial and scattering are where local rules come in, and for a cat, burial is the one people most often ask about.
The official Minnesota local government directory lists every county and city office, which is the quickest way to find who to ask in Apple Valley.
The rules that apply across Minnesota (home burial, scattering and who oversees pet cremation) are summarized on our Minnesota page. Apple Valley may add its own conditions, so check with the city or county before digging.
Step by step in Apple Valley
- If your cat dies at night, nobody needs a phone call before daylight. Carry your cat to the coolest room in the house and lay a towel over them.
- Put a towel or pad underneath. After death the bladder and bowels often empty, which is ordinary.
- Gently curl your cat into a sleeping position within the first few hours, before the body stiffens. It makes the box or basket easier and the goodbye gentler.
- In the morning, call your vet or a crematory covering Apple Valley. Let them know where your cat is now and whether you're able to drive them over.
- Ask for the price in writing, including collection, private or communal cremation and the container for the ashes.
- Take a paw print, a lock of fur or their collar before collection if you'd like a keepsake.
- Write down the expected return date for the ashes, and the name of whoever will call when they're ready.
Memorials and keepsakes for your cat
Rabbits and other small mammals are popular family pets here, and some live in outdoor hutches. If a rabbit dies outside in winter, bring the body in to a garage or cool room rather than leaving it where predators can reach it. January nights near 9F slow decay; on hot summer afternoons, get the body somewhere cool quickly and call a provider the same day.
or compare your instinct with the poll results, use the free tools before you ring anyone, there are guides for the big decisions and articles for the details, The services page is the place to compare what is included. If you live between Apple Valley and Saint Paul, Brooklyn Park, Minneapolis and Bloomington, either page applies. Every other community in Minnesota, 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.
Which small keepsake would mean the most from your cat?
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If you have more than one cat, did the others see the cat who died?
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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
Cremation cost calculator
Estimate a realistic price range for your pet's size, location and the type of cremation.
Urn size calculator
Find the urn volume you need from your pet's weight, plus keepsake and sharing options.
Ashes weight estimator
See roughly how much ash to expect back, by species and body weight.
Questions people ask
Will I have to travel to Saint Paul to arrange things?
Not usually. Providers based in Saint Paul (roughly 16 miles from Apple Valley) collect from here as a matter of routine, and the paperwork is done by email or phone. If you want to be present for a witnessed cremation, that is when the drive matters.
Is cremation common in Minnesota?
For people, yes: about 68.5%[3] of Minnesota 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 Apple Valley follow the human pattern closely, so cremation is the default most families here start from.
Is Apple Valley big enough to have several cat aftercare providers?
Probably, on the numbers. By our estimate about 8,600 Apple Valley households keep a cat and around 770 lose one each year, which is enough steady demand to support more than one provider. We derive that from population (about 55,248), household size and national ownership and lifespan figures.
Which nearby towns can I compare with Apple Valley?
The closest communities we cover are Burnsville (about 4 miles), Eagan (about 5 miles) and Lakeville (about 5 miles). Providers based in those places often serve Apple Valley too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
What if my cat died outdoors or was hit by a car near Apple Valley?
Bring gloves, a towel and a box, lift your cat gently and take them home or straight to your vet. A vet can scan for a microchip if you're not sure it's your cat, and can arrange cremation from there. A private cremation is still entirely possible, and so is a proper goodbye; the circumstances don't change that. Take someone with you if you can.
Can I keep my cat's whiskers and fur before cremation?
Yes, and it's easiest before collection. Clip a small lock of fur from somewhere hidden, like the chest or behind a back leg, and keep it in an envelope or small bag. Shed whiskers turn up in beds and on windowsills for weeks, and a glass vial keeps them safe. Many providers can also take a fur clipping or paw print for you if you ask on the first call.
Sources and our estimates
- [1] 39% of US households own a cat, which is about 53 million households. American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry, 2025.
- [2] 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.
- [3] The NFDA projected Minnesota's cremation rate at 68.5% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [4] CareCredit's 2025 study put US cat euthanasia at $158 in clinic and $359 at home, cat cremation at $180 and cat cemetery burial at $566. CareCredit (Synchrony) - Cat Euthanasia: Understanding Your Options and Costs (2025 ASQ360 procedural cost study), 2025.
- [5] Bank of America card data show average monthly pet store and pet care (incl. vet) spending in the Seattle metro was more than 30% above the US average in Jan-Apr 2025, with San Francisco close behind. Bank of America Institute - Best in show: US pet ownership (27 May 2025), 2025.
- [6] Bank of America found pet spending was below the US average in San Antonio, St Louis and Atlanta, and elevated in New York and Boston (Jan-Apr 2025). Bank of America Institute - Best in show: US pet ownership (27 May 2025), 2025.
- [7] Using the industry rule of thumb of 1 cubic inch of urn space per pound of body weight, a 12 lb cat needs an urn of about 12 cubic inches; a 70 lb dog needs about 70 cubic inches. Our estimate: urn cu in = body weight lb x 1 (industry rule of thumb, not a measured value). How we calculate.
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