Losing a pet can be a tough experience, but deciding what to do with the body of your pet can be even harder, especially when you view them as a part of your family.
Often pet owners choose to cremate their beloved pets and keep their ashes, but there are other services that owners can choose from, including burial at a pet cemetery, landfilling or composting.
But what if you want to keep them closer to home? Do you have the option to bury your pet in your backyard in Washington state?
Is it legal to bury your pet in your yard?
In Washington it is legal to bury your pet in your yard, but there are specific guidelines that you must follow.
According to Washington law, the owner of the dead animal or the owner of the property where the animal is found must dispose of the animal within 72 hours after death or discovery. Proper forms of disposal include burial, landfilling, incineration, composting, rendering, or a method approved by the local health officer.
If you choose to bury your pet, its entire body must be covered with at least 3 feet of soil and cannot be less than 100 feet from any surface waters including wells, springs or streams, according to Washington Code. The burial site cannot be in an area that is prone to seasonal flooding.
Washington Code also states that local health officers can decide the methods of disposal of a dead animal if:
- The animal died with a disease that could be transmissible to humans
- The health officer deems there is a public health emergency
What about livestock?
In Washington it is also legal to bury livestock on your property, depending on the size of your land.
According to Washington State Law, livestock that die of natural causes can be buried on private property with permission from the property owner.
A proper burial must be done within 72 hours after death or discovery and the carcass of the animal must be buried at a depth of at least 3 feet below the surface and must be covered with soil within 24 hours of being placed in the ground.
The burial of an animal must also be at least 300 feet from any body of water, including wells, springs or rivers to prevent the possibility of water contamination.
Animals must also be buried at least 300 feet away from any residence that is not owned by the owner of the animal and at least 50 feet from parcels not owned by the owner of the animal, according to Washington law.
The burial site of an animal cannot be in an area that is prone to seasonal flooding.
State law also limits each burial site to 1,000 pounds of carcasses or to one carcass that weighs more than 1,000 pounds and limits the amount of land used for burial sites to 10 percent of the property or to one acre.
The burial of carcasses on property that is less than 5 acres is not allowed, unless it is the burial of one carcass that weighs less than 200 pounds.
