3D Printed Urns for Family Pets

The impulse to preserve the memory of a beloved family pet is an urge that has been felt ever since humans first began to share their domesticities with our furry friends; the Ancient Egyptians designed bespoke sarcophagi for Royal Dogs and no Victorian home was complete without a stuffed family pet in a glass cabinet.

Because taxidermy is a process that can be extremely lengthy, costly and upsetting, it is rare to see a pet Chihuahua stuffed and framed on your average 21st century wall. Some pets are merely incinerated by the local vet, some are buried complete with headstones and epitaphs at pet cemeteries, some chose to create cardboard cut-outs from a photo to keep… whatever the process for mourning and remembering as far as pets are concerned there is money to be made.

The newest process for enshrining the memory of your pet is, of course, 3D printing. Foreverence hit the headlines last year as the Minneapolis start-up created an incredible urn for Devo multi-instrumentalist Bob Casale. Foreverence were asked by the Casale family to replicate the iconic Devo hat – The Energy Dome – as a resting place for Bob’s ashes.

Foreverence have now launched Foreverence Pets, a service for creating bespoke urns and keepsakes for family pets. The team at Foreverence Pets works with each individual or family to print an item that represents the remarkable story behind each companion animal.

“As individuals, we want to be remembered for the life we led— our experiences, triumphs and everyday actions that made us unique,” states founder Pete Saari. “Similarly, our pets are an extension of us. They help to define and personalise our lives.”

The team at Foreverence brings years of experience modelling and finishing three-dimensional images, which are then 3D printed and shipped within 7-10 days of design approval.

One customer whose pet border collie, Wilson, passed away said of the service: “We still miss Wilson’s energy every day. He was a tail-chasing, disc retrieving, kid-herding companion for nine wonderful years. The iconic pose of him hauling in a disc at full speed is a memory we’re glad we could capture forever.”