Millions spent on pet funerals in China

Specialized services for saying goodbye to pets are growing rapidly in China. However, this billion-dollar industry still lacks a unified regulatory system.

In May, a touching scene was observed at a pet funeral home in Dalian, Liaoning Province. A couple said their final goodbye to their beloved silver British Shorthair, which they had raised for eight years. They held a memorial service for the cat, named Pidan, who died of heart disease, before sending it for cremation.

Such scenes are becoming increasingly common in China. According to Tian Yan Cha, the country has 43,600 companies related to pet burial. In 2022 alone, 27,100 new companies were registered.

According to an iiMedia Research report, the market value in 2022 was 10 billion yuan, which is approximately 1.5 billion dollars.

The growth of the market is also linked to the increase in the number of pets in the country. Last year, in Chinese cities, approximately 53 million dogs and 73 million cats were recorded.

Specialized funeral homes offer services such as euthanasia, body preparation, memorial services, cremation, ash storage, burial, and the creation of mementos. Prices range from 1,000 yuan to tens of thousands of yuan .

For example, a "highly customized" ceremony where four staff members carry the pet coffin and transport it in a limousine costs 9,880 yuan . In some places, religious ceremonies are held for 1,800 yuan, while turning pet ashes into a "life crystal" is valued at 18,000 yuan.

Experts emphasize that such ceremonies primarily satisfy the emotional needs of pet owners. The services use flowers, farewell shrouds, memorial walls, boxes with paw prints, and containers holding pet fur.

At the same time, there are serious problems in the industry. There is no single government body that fully regulates the pet funeral industry. Lawyer Fu Sijian says that the division of oversight among various agencies makes it difficult to prevent certain violations.

Furthermore, due to the lack of unified standards, the content and quality of services are not clearly defined in some contracts. This makes it difficult for customers to protect their rights.

In 2024, a citizen in Shenzhen paid 700 yuan for the individual cremation of their cat. Later, from a video provided by the shop, they noticed that the cremated cat was not their pet. After many negotiations, the shop admitted that their cat had been cremated along with other animals.

Thus, the pet funeral industry in China is growing rapidly and becoming a high-turnover market. However, along with the development of the sector, issues of service quality, regulation, and the protection of pet owners' rights remain urgent.