A living memorial for your pet in Solon
By our estimate, around 8,700 households in Solon share their home with a dog or cat, and roughly 730 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 Solon's climate
- Soil-safe planting method for ashes
- Real prices for bio urns and aquamation
Solon, Ohio
Living memorials in Solon: the local picture
Heavy clay soil and a long, soggy thaw are normal around Solon, and both affect anything placed outdoors. A memorial tree planted with ashes does better going in during late spring, once the ground drains, and a shade-tolerant native such as serviceberry suits a wooded lot. Setting a heavy marker over a layer of crushed limestone stops it tilting after frost.
Solon properties tend to be large and shaded, so a memorial among the trunks often appeals more than one on a mantel. A flat granite stone tucked into a hosta bed suits these yards. If you are torn between keeping ashes indoors, wearing a small amount as jewelry or planting them, remember that a single cremation can be split several ways.
Small towns tend to have long memories, and a memorial tree in Solon is often planted with a lot of history around it: the same yard for decades, a family farm, a favorite fishing spot. If the land is likely to stay in the family, a long-lived native tree is a lovely choice. If it might be sold, consider a shrub bed, a portion of ashes kept back, or a water release that doesn't depend on who owns the ground in twenty years.
Solon's population is around 23,679, the 71st-largest of the 106 Ohio communities we cover. The nearest larger centre is Cleveland, about 16 miles (25 km) away, which is where some providers serving Solon are based.
If you want to compare providers, look at Twinsburg (4 miles), Maple Heights (7 miles) and Aurora (8 miles). Distance matters because pickup fees and the time until the ashes come back both grow with the drive.
Our estimate
8,700
Estimated dog- or cat-owning households in Solon
How we calculated this
23,679 ÷ 2.5 = 9,472 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 8,700. A household with several pets counts once.
Our estimate
730
Solon families who lose a dog or cat each year (estimate)
How we calculated this
8,700 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 730 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.
The published sources behind those figures are Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science and American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry.
Why cremation culture in Ohio shapes your options
Faith shapes these choices in Ohio, where cremation covers about 59.1%[5] of deaths and burial much of the rest. Some traditions that prefer burial for people have no view on pets; others do. If this matters to anyone in your household, ask a faith leader you trust. A planting urn puts the ashes back into the ground, which many people find sits comfortably with a burial tradition.
That Ohio rate is a human one, published by NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage) (2024). We quote it for Solon only as a pointer to how families here already think about cremation.
Seasons, soil and weather for a memorial in Solon
Freezing and thawing through January, February, March, November and December can heave a newly planted tree out of the ground in Solon. If you plant in autumn, mulch well after the first frost to keep the soil temperature steady, and check the base of the tree in spring. A spring planting avoids the problem entirely and gives roots a full growing season before the next winter.
Water releases need open water, and in Solon lakes and ponds may ice over around February. Never walk out onto ice to release an urn. If a lake or river was your pet's place, plan the release for spring or summer, when the shoreline is safe and a water-soluble urn can float and dissolve as it's meant to. Keep the ashes at home until then.
Eco memorial prices, from urn to tree
Add up every part before you commit. Beyond the cremation, a living memorial in Solon can include the bio urn, compost and bark, a pH kit, the tree or shrub, a guard against deer or rabbits, and perhaps a marker. Our memorial budget planner lists each line so nothing surprises you. Most families find the tree is the cheapest part and the cremation the most expensive.
The full price table by product is on our Ohio page, and the services page explains what each option includes.
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 Ohio
Rules change more often than most people realise, and many local policies about ashes were never written down at all. Treat any general guide for Ohio, including ours, as a starting point. Whoever looks after that particular field, park or shoreline is the one whose answer counts, so it's worth getting it by email where you can.
To find your county or city office in Ohio, start with the official Ohio local government directory.
Home burial and scattering are governed at the Ohio level first; our Ohio rules summary has the detail. Then check whether Solon or your HOA adds anything.
From ashes to a growing tree: the steps
- If the ashes have been on a shelf for years, you can still plant them. Cremated remains don't spoil, so there's no deadline.
- Open the container carefully somewhere sheltered from wind, and check whether the ashes are in a sealed bag inside.
- Weigh or measure what you have, then use our urn size calculator to see which planting urn or water urn fits.
- Decide whether to keep any back. After years at home, some families like to plant most of the ashes and keep a spoonful.
- Pick a date that carries meaning, perhaps the day they died or the day they were born, and ask the people who loved them to come.
- Treat the old urn kindly afterwards. Many people reuse a wooden or ceramic urn as a plant pot or keepsake box.
Remembering your pet, in Solon and wherever you go next
Families in Solon often keep the returned ashes in their simple temporary box for weeks, even months, before choosing a permanent piece. That is entirely normal. The only keepsakes with a deadline are paw and nose imprints and snips of fur, all of which must be done before cremation begins. Raise them early, then leave everything else for later, when decisions come more easily.
use the free tools before you ring anyone, See what each option includes on our services page, or see what other families chose in the poll results, look through our guides and the blog. You can also browse every city in the United States. Nearby, we also cover Toledo, Akron, Dayton and Cleveland, and every city in Ohio.
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.
Would you consider releasing your pet's ashes in water?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
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 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
Roughly how many pets die in Solon each year?
Our estimate is around 730. It comes from Solon's population (about 23,679), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 8,700 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
Is cremation common in Ohio?
For people, yes: about 59.1%[5] of Ohio 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 Solon follow the human pattern closely, so cremation is the default most families here start from.
Does the Solon climate change what I should do first?
Only the timing. In July, with highs near 81°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.
Can a provider from a neighbouring town collect from Solon?
Usually yes. Twinsburg is about 4 miles away, Maple Heights is about 7 miles away and Aurora is about 8 miles away, all inside a normal collection radius. Get the mileage written into the quote so there is no surprise on the day.
Can I plant my pet's ashes in winter in Solon?
Not usually, if the ground is frozen. Keep the ashes indoors until spring, when the soil has thawed and drained, or plant in early autumn with several weeks of open ground before hard frosts. Winter is a good time to mix the ashes with compost in a covered tub and let the blend rest before planting.
What happens to the memorial tree if I move away from Solon?
It stays with the land, and ashes mixed into soil can't be recovered. If a move is possible, plant in a large container, plant at a relative's home, or keep a small portion of the ashes back for a future garden. Cuttings from many shrubs root easily, so you can take a piece of the plant with you.
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 Ohio's cremation rate at 59.1% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] If just 10% of U.S. pet cremations moved to aquamation, about 4,200 t CO2e a year would be avoided. Our estimate: 1.5M x 10% x 31.3 kg x 90% reduction. How we calculate.
Plan a living memorial in Solon
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.