Growing something from the goodbye in Pembroke Pines
By our estimate, around 65,000 households in Pembroke Pines share their home with a dog or cat, and roughly 5,400 of those pets die each year. More of those families now ask about planting or water memorials. Here's how to do it well.
- Trees matched to Pembroke Pines's climate
- Soil-safe planting method for ashes
- Real prices for bio urns and aquamation
Pembroke Pines, Florida
Where a living memorial fits in Pembroke Pines
South Florida's sun, humidity and storms are hard on outdoor memorials. Resin fades and wood rots, while granite, concrete and metal hold up far better. If you plant a bio urn in the garden, pick a native species suited to wet, sandy soil. Before hurricane season, bring small outdoor pieces inside or secure them so they don't become projectiles. A covered lanai offers some shelter.
Many Pembroke Pines families live in HOA communities or condos, where garden memorials may be restricted. Indoor memorials work well: an urn on a shelf, a framed paw print, a shadow box with a collar and photo, or jewelry holding a little ash. If you'd like an outdoor memorial, a small potted plant or stone on a patio or screened lanai usually fits within community rules.
If other pets still share your home in Pembroke Pines, choose the memorial plant with them in mind. Lilies are dangerous to cats, and sago palms, oleander and yew are toxic to dogs and many other animals. A vet or the nursery can confirm which plants are safe. It would be a sad twist for the memorial to harm the animals who are still with you.
Pembroke Pines is home to about 176,714 people, the 11th-largest of the 235 Florida communities we cover. Hialeah, roughly 11 miles off, is the closest larger centre, and a share of the providers who cover Pembroke Pines run from there.
Families in Pembroke Pines often end up using a provider from Miramar (2 miles), Cooper City (3 miles) and Davie (5 miles). That is normal: crematories serve a radius, not a single town, and the drive is priced into collection.
Our estimate
65,000
Estimated dog- or cat-owning households in Pembroke Pines
How we calculated this
176,714 ÷ 2.5 = 70,686 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 65,000. A household with several pets counts once.
Our estimate
5,400
dog and cat deaths per year in Pembroke Pines, our estimate
How we calculated this
65,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 5,400 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.
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 culture in Florida shapes your options
In Florida, about 72.5%[5] of people are cremated, one of the higher rates around. When most human funerals end with ashes, the question "what shall we do with them?" comes up in nearly every family, and a tree, a garden bed or a lake release is a common answer. That familiarity carries over to pets. It also means more crematories to choose from, and more chance that one of them offers water cremation.
We take the Florida rate from NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). It is a human statistic; there is no equivalent pet figure for Pembroke Pines, and we would rather show a real number than invent one.
Choosing the right month to plant in Pembroke Pines
Watering is where most memorial trees in hot places succeed or fail. In Pembroke Pines, give a new planting a slow, deep soak once or twice a week through May, June, July, August, September and October rather than a daily sprinkle. A drip line or a slow-release watering bag works well if you'll be away. A deep soak flushes salts from the ash blend below the root zone and coaxes roots to grow downward too.
Summer water can be busy or unsafe in hot places. Around Pembroke Pines, shorelines are crowded in August, and some lakes close for algae blooms in the heat. For a lake or river goodbye, pick a cooler month or go at first light, check for any water-quality notices, and choose a spot where you can reach the water easily without slipping.
Adding up the cost of a bio urn memorial in Pembroke Pines
It helps to compare a planted memorial with the alternatives. A pet cemetery burial for a dog averages about $831[6] in the US, which by our estimate is around 3.2 times the national average for private cremation[7]. Private cremation plus a bio urn and a sapling in your own Pembroke Pines garden usually comes in far below a cemetery plot, and there are no yearly maintenance fees.
We keep the detailed Florida price table on one page so it stays current: see Florida prices.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Who to ask before you plant or scatter in Florida
Carrying ashes from one place to another is usually simple, but keep the paperwork. The certificate or letter from the crematory shows what's in the container, which helps if you're crossing borders, flying out of Florida or handing the ashes to a cemetery. Keep a copy with the ashes and another somewhere safe at home.
The official Florida local government directory lists every county and city office, which is the quickest way to find who to ask in Pembroke Pines.
We keep Florida's burial and scattering rules in one place: the Florida rules summary. Before a home burial in Pembroke Pines, also ask the city whether local ordinances add anything.
From ashes to a growing tree: the steps
- Decide what the memorial is for. Wanting somewhere to sit, a living plant, a release on water or simply the gentlest footprint each leads you toward a different kind of urn.
- If a greener cremation matters, ask about aquamation before anything else; it's the step with the biggest environmental difference.
- Keep a small portion back in a keepsake in case a house move or a second memorial is on the cards down the line.
- Buy the tree locally. A young native tree from a grower around Pembroke Pines tends to outgrow anything sprouted from a packet seed.
- Prepare the soil a season ahead if the timing allows, so the ash and compost blend is ready on planting day.
- Plant with the people who loved your pet; hand everyone a task of their own, whether blending, backfilling or watering.
Keeping the memorial alive in Pembroke Pines
Pembroke Pines has many retirees and families with ties to the Northeast, the Caribbean and Latin America, and some prefer memorials that can travel or be shared. Splitting ashes between a home urn and small keepsakes lets relatives in other places hold a piece of the memory. Ask for a private cremation if you want to keep or divide all of the ashes.
or compare your instinct with the poll results, run the numbers with the free planning tools, look through our guides and the blog, For a plain comparison of the choices, open services. If you live between Pembroke Pines and Miami, Tampa, Jacksonville and St. Petersburg, either page applies. Every other community in Florida, 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.
If water cremation (aquamation) were offered near you, would you choose it?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If you rent or might move, how would you handle a memorial planting?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If you had to decide today, which aftercare would you choose for your pet?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Free tools to help you plan
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Memorial tree finder
Pick a tree for a planting urn that suits your climate, space and pet.
Aftercare options compared
Compare private, communal and water cremation with burial on cost, timing and what comes home.
Questions people ask
How do Florida attitudes to cremation compare?
NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024) puts the Florida human cremation rate at about 72.5%[5]. We show it on the Pembroke Pines 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.
Roughly how many pets die in Pembroke Pines each year?
Our estimate is around 5,400. It comes from Pembroke Pines's population (about 176,714), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 65,000 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
Where are the providers that serve Pembroke Pines actually based?
Some are local, and some run from Hialeah, about 11 miles away. That is normal for a city this size. What matters is the collection time they quote for Pembroke Pines and whether the drive is priced into the total, so ask both up front.
How does Pembroke Pines's weather affect pet aftercare?
August is the hottest month in Pembroke Pines, with average highs around 91°F, so prompt collection matters most then. Winters are mild, with average lows staying above freezing, so outdoor burial or scattering is usually possible year round.
How do I keep a memorial tree alive in the Pembroke Pines heat?
Choose a drought-tolerant species that already grows well locally, plant in the cooler months, and water deeply and slowly rather than little and often, so salts from the ashes move down past the roots. A wide ring of mulch keeps the soil cooler. Expect to water through the first two summers.
How many dogs and cats are there in Pembroke Pines?
By our estimate, about 65,000 households in Pembroke Pines have a dog or a cat, and around 5,400 of those pets die each year. We calculate this from the city's population, average household size and national pet ownership and lifespan figures. The method is shown on this page, and the real number of animals is higher.
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 Florida's cremation rate at 72.5% 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 pet cemetery burial of a dog at $831 (range $659-$1,513). CareCredit (Synchrony) - How Much Does It Cost To Euthanize a Dog? (2025 ASQ360 procedural cost study), 2025.
- [7] US pet cemetery burial for a dog costs about 3.2x a private cremation ($831 vs $260 national averages). Our estimate: 831 / 260 = 3.20. How we calculate.
- [8] U.S. pet flame cremations emit on the order of 47,000 t CO2e a year. Our estimate: 1.5M pet cremations x 31.3 kg CO2e. How we calculate.
Plan a living memorial in Pembroke Pines
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.