Keeping your pet close in Goodyear: pendants, rings and glass
By our estimate, about 46,000 households in Goodyear share their home with a dog or cat, and roughly 3,850 of those pets die each year. A small wearable piece is one of the quieter ways people there keep them close.
- Pieces for relatives in other cities
- Allergy-friendly metals and ring sizing
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Goodyear, Arizona
Where Goodyear families get memorial jewelry made
Many Goodyear residents moved here in the last decade and may move again, so portable memorials are practical. A compact urn, a cast of your pet's paw, or a pendant holding a pinch of ash can go with you to the next house. Ashes can be divided among family members in other states so everyone has a share. Families in the Valley often ship a share to relatives back east.
Strong sun and summer monsoon storms wear down outdoor memorials in the Valley. An engraved stone or granite marker lasts far better than wood or resin. If you'd like a living memorial and own your home, a biodegradable urn planted with a desert-adapted shrub or small tree suits the climate. HOA rules may affect what you can place in a front yard.
For Goodyear families buying pieces for relatives in other towns, it helps to think about sizing and allergies before the order goes in. Ask each person which metal they wear without trouble, measure ring sizes rather than guessing and agree how long a chain they'd like. Returning a sealed, filled piece because it doesn't fit is awkward for everyone, and some makers can't reopen a sealed chamber.
Goodyear's population is around 125,359, the 12th-largest of the 29 Arizona communities we cover. Phoenix, roughly 22 miles off, is the closest larger centre, and a share of the providers who cover Goodyear run from there.
The closest communities we cover are Avondale (5 miles), Buckeye (20 miles) and Phoenix (22 miles, a larger centre). Providers serving those towns often travel to Goodyear too, so it can be worth asking them for a quote.
Our estimate
46,000
Goodyear: dog- or cat-owning households, our estimate
How we calculated this
125,359 ÷ 2.5 = 50,144 households; × 53% (dog) + 39% (cat) = 46,000. A household with several pets counts once.
Our estimate
3,850
Goodyear families who lose a dog or cat each year (estimate)
How we calculated this
46,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 3,850 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.
Sources for the statistics above: Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science and American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 State of the Industry.
Local attitudes to keeping ashes close
Cremation is the norm in Arizona, at about 80.7%[5] of people. Where it's this common, people often keep a small share of ashes and pass the rest on, to be scattered, buried or kept by another relative. Jewelry fits neatly into that habit. Many families here plan the split from the start: a pinch for each pendant, a little for scattering and the rest in the urn.
We take the Arizona 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 Goodyear, and we would rather show a real number than invent one.
Heat, humidity and cold: caring for your piece in Goodyear
Swimming season in Goodyear is long, and the one habit worth building is taking a filled pendant off before the pool or the beach. Chlorine is hard on sterling silver and plated finishes, salt water gets into threads, and sunscreen builds up in engraving. Fused glass and memorial diamonds are fine in water, but the chain and the clasp may not be. Rinse in fresh water and dry fully when you get home.
Long, bright summers around Goodyear are hard on blackened and oxidized detail. The dark fill that makes a paw print stand out on silver can fade faster with sweat and sunscreen through May, June, July, August, September and October. Ask the maker whether the print is engraved deep enough to hold its oxidation, and whether they'll refresh it if it wears.
How much to budget for a memorial piece
Prices depend far more on the material than on where you live. Across US retailers, a stainless steel ash pendant starts from $19.95[6], sterling silver necklaces run $88–$298[7], and a solid 14k gold pendant costs $1,298–$4,750[8]. That's why entry-level silver is about 4.4 times entry-level steel[9], and entry-level gold about 15 times silver[10]. A Goodyear jeweler may charge a little more or less, but these are the ranges to compare against.
We keep the detailed Arizona price table on one page so it stays current: see Arizona prices.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Mailing, dividing and scattering: the rules in Arizona
Dividing a pet's ashes is entirely legal and very common. Most pieces take less than a teaspoon, so the bigger decision is what happens to the rest. Here's what Arizona allows for burial and scattering, and a reminder that if you plan to send ashes to a maker, the postal service's own rules apply on top of anything local.
To find your county or city office in Arizona, start with the official Arizona local government directory.
The Arizona page sets out who oversees pet cremation and what the state says about burial and scattering. Goodyear's own bylaws can sit on top of that, so ask before you dig.
A simple order checklist
- Call your vet or an aftercare provider first. Collection, and when it happens, is what they'll explain; the jewelry can be thought about afterwards.
- If you can, keep a lock of fur. Before collection, a small snip from under the chin or the ruff, placed in a paper envelope, is all a resin piece needs.
- Press a paw into something soft such as modelling clay, or use washable ink, if either is nearby. If that feels beyond you right now, leave it; the vet or crematory can often take one instead.
- Say when you book that you want ashes back, and ask for a little to be bagged apart for jewelry.
- Give yourself a few weeks. Deciding is harder while you're in shock, and a piece picked out a month from now will mean just as much.
- When you're ready, compare two routes: having a Goodyear jeweler fill a piece the same day, or commissioning a custom design from a specialist studio.
Small rituals that go with a memorial piece
Estrella Mountain Regional Park and the Sierra Estrella foothills are places many Goodyear residents associate with sunsets, desert hikes and quiet mornings. County park rules govern the Estrellas, so read them before scattering anything. A portion kept in a small urn gives you a place to remember indoors during the months when the trails are too hot. Early morning, before the heat, is the gentlest time to go.
browse in-depth guides or recent articles, run the numbers with the free planning tools, Our services overview lays out every option side by side, or compare your instinct with the poll results. You can also browse every city in the United States. Nearby, we also cover Glendale, Mesa, Gilbert and Tucson, and every city in Arizona.
Reader polls
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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.
Jewelry ash capacity guide
How much ash fits in pendants, rings and glass, and how many pieces one pet can fill.
Ashes sharing planner
Split ashes fairly between family members, keepsake urns and jewelry.
Questions people ask
Will I have to travel to Phoenix to arrange things?
Not usually. Providers based in Phoenix (roughly 22 miles from Goodyear) 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 Arizona?
For people, yes: about 80.7%[5] of Arizona 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 Goodyear follow the human pattern closely, so cremation is the default most families here start from.
How does Goodyear's weather affect pet aftercare?
July is the hottest month in Goodyear, with average highs around 105°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.
Roughly how many pets die in Goodyear each year?
Our estimate is around 3,850. It comes from Goodyear's population (about 125,359), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 46,000 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
How soon after cremation can I get a pendant filled in Goodyear?
As soon as the ashes are home, which by our estimate is typically 3 to 14 days after cremation[12]. A ready-made pendant can be filled by a local jeweler that same afternoon. There's no need to hurry, though. Many people wait weeks or months, and the ashes don't change while they wait.
What if my pet had a communal cremation and no ashes came back?
You can still have a meaningful piece. Fur you kept, a paw or nose print taken by the vet, or even a clear photo can be engraved on silver or set in resin. Ask the clinic whether they took a print before your pet left; many do as standard. If you'd like prints of another pet in future, the paw print kit chooser compares the options.
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 Arizona's cremation rate at 80.7% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [6] Memorials.com sells stainless steel pet-ash necklaces from $19.95, most under $30. Memorials.com – Pet ashes necklaces, 2026.
- [7] Sterling silver pet-ash necklaces at Memorials.com cost $87.95–$297.95. Memorials.com – Pet ashes necklaces, 2026.
- [8] Solid 14k gold pet-ash pendants at Memorials.com cost $1,297.95–$4,749.95; gold-plated ones $87.95–$169.95. Memorials.com – Pet ashes necklaces, 2026.
- [9] Entry-level sterling silver pet-ash necklaces cost about 4.4 times entry-level stainless steel ones. Our estimate: $87.95 / $19.95 (Memorials.com starting prices). How we calculate.
- [10] Entry-level solid 14k gold pet-ash pendants cost about 15 times entry-level sterling silver ones at the same retailer. Our estimate: $1,297.95 / $87.95 (Memorials.com starting prices). How we calculate.
- [11] The typical sterling silver pet cremation pendant costs about $190, based on the middle of three sellers' price points. Our estimate: median of [Urns.com median $129, Memorials.com midpoint of $87.95–$297.95 = $193, Final Gift sterling paw pendant $240]. How we calculate.
- [12] Published ashes-return times across the network's markets range from same-day (paid express) to about 4 weeks; a conservative typical window is 3-14 days. Our estimate: min/max across sources: Lambeth 3 days; US 5-10 days; RSPCA QLD within 14 days; AniCura Sweden 2-4 weeks. How we calculate.
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