Fifteen of the 101 ideas from the book. The rest, plus 10 step-by-step projects, are in the book.
A small amount of your pet's ashes can be mixed into a glass bead made to fit one of the popular charm bracelets. You can pick the color and have something that doesn't necessarily look like a memorial.
If you've had several pets over the years, you could add another bead for each one. Eventually the bracelet tells its own story without you having to explain it to anybody.
You can get a metal collar tag with a small compartment inside that holds a pinch of ashes. Have your pet's name engraved on it just like their old tag.
Put it on your keys, hang it from a bag or keep it with their old collar. You could even put it on your next pet's collar. That might sound a little odd to some people, but I can see why somebody would do it.
If your pet was your fishing buddy, you can have a little of their ashes put into a fishing lure or tied into a fly.
You can actually fish with it, or don't. Put it in the tackle box and leave it there. Sometimes just seeing it mixed in with all your other fishing stuff is enough.
The book has a hunting decoy idea that works along the same lines.
If music was part of the time you spent with your pet, a small amount of the ashes can actually be pressed into a playable vinyl record. What goes on the record is up to you. It could be a favorite song, a recording of your pet barking or purring from an old phone video, or even you talking about some of the things you remember.
It's a little different, but that's kind of the point. Not every memorial has to sit on a shelf.
You can also have a song written about your pet. Give the songwriter the real stuff: your pet's name, the stupid things they did, where they slept, the walks you took, or that one thing they did that nobody else would understand.
That's where the song comes from. Not just “I loved my dog and I miss her,” but the little things that made that dog yours.
You could play the song at a memorial, keep it for yourself, or even use it with the vinyl record idea above.
A potter can use a small amount of your pet's ashes in the glaze of a mug, bowl, vase or another piece of pottery. It doesn't have to look like a memorial unless you want it to.
I like this idea because it can be something you actually use. Sometimes that's better than another thing sitting on a shelf.
Your pet's ashes can be placed inside a memorial hourglass instead of sand. Some use all ashes while others use only a small amount.
You can turn it over when you're thinking about your pet, or just leave it alone. There really doesn't have to be a rule for it.
A small amount of your pet's ashes can be incorporated into a glass cross or another symbol of your faith. You can keep it on a shelf, near a picture of your pet or somewhere the sunlight can come through the glass.
For some of us, losing a pet also brings up the bigger questions about God, death and what happens after this. A little glass cross isn't going to answer those questions.
Sometimes it doesn't need to.
A stained glass artist can make a small window panel using your pet's name, likeness, paw print or even just the colors that remind you of them. Ask the artist if a small amount of ashes can be safely incorporated into the glass.
Put it in a window where the sun can hit it. You don't need a picture-perfect portrait of your pet for it to mean something.
You can use a tree pod urn that holds your pet's ashes along with a soil mix and a sapling or seeds. The pod goes into the ground and eventually breaks down as the tree grows.
This is a little different than just using a biodegradable urn. You're actually planting something in the same place. Just make sure you pick a tree that will grow good where you live.
This one is a little out there, literally. Ask Elon about Mars. You can have a small amount of your pet's ashes sent into space.
Believe it or not, there are companies that put the ashes into a small capsule and send it up on a spaceflight. Some come back to earth and some can stay in orbit. This isn't going to be a cheap idea, so check what the company is currently charging and exactly what kind of flight you're buying. If you're asking, no, Zoe did not become an astronaut.
If your pet wasn't exactly the quiet type, this one might fit.
There are companies that can put a small amount of your pet's ashes into a fireworks shell and send them off with a bang. You will need to check the fireworks laws where you live first.
And don't buy a firework and try stuffing the ashes in there yourself. That's not what I'm talking about. Zoe used to hide under the couch when fireworks went off. For us, putting her ashes under the couch seems like a better fit.
You can put a QR code on a grave marker, plaque or even the plate on an urn. Scan it with a phone and it can open a memorial page with pictures, videos and some of the stories about your pet.
This is one of those ideas that wasn't really around when I first wrote the book. Instead of trying to fit everything about your pet on a little marker, the QR code gives you somewhere to put the rest of it.
You can make a memorial page right here on the memorial wall and use that page for the QR code.
Some parks, animal shelters and other places let you sponsor a bench or memorial brick and put your pet's name on it.
You probably won't be able to put the ashes there, so ask before doing anything like that. But you still get a real place with your pet's name on it.
And with a bench, you can actually go there and sit for a while. Nothing complicated about that.
You can mix a small amount of your pet's ashes into epoxy resin and pour it into silicone molds. You can make coasters, paperweights, pendants and about anything else you can find a mold for.
The kits aren't hard to find at craft stores. Follow the directions that come with the resin, wear gloves and work somewhere with fresh air. You don't need much ash, so don't dump half the bag in there thinking more is better.