Livestock cremation and disposal in Englewood
A dead cow can't wait long, but you still have a choice. Here's how rendering, composting, burial and private cremation compare for farms and families in Englewood, and what each one costs per head.
- Rendering, compost, burial or cremation compared
- Help finding who serves your county
- Written prices before anything is loaded
Englewood, Colorado
Livestock aftercare in Englewood: the local picture
For Englewood owners of boarded horses, donkeys or goats, winter storms and summer heat affect aftercare at the stable more than in the city. Frozen ground can make burial impossible, and summer heat means decisions must be made quickly. Talk to the barn manager ahead of time about what would happen, and keep your wishes written down with your boarding contract.
Englewood has no room for livestock, but some residents keep horses boarded at stables in Douglas or Jefferson County, or have family ranches farther afield. When a boarded horse or other large animal dies, the barn usually has a standard arrangement. You can still request a private cremation with the ashes returned, and whether you can visit before the animal is taken.
Out past Englewood, the nearest collector may be a couple of hours away and the phone signal patchy in the back pastures. That shapes what a sensible plan looks like. Keep key numbers written on paper as well as in your phone, and decide ahead which gate a truck would use and which spot by the road stays firm in wet weather. On big country, a cow that dies far from any track may have to be dealt with where she lies, so know what your rules allow for that case.
Englewood is home to about 35,305 people, the 25th-largest of the 36 Colorado communities we cover. The nearest larger centre is Denver, about 6 miles (10 km) away, which is where some providers serving Englewood are based.
Families in Englewood often end up using a provider from Littleton (4 miles), Lakewood (6 miles, a larger centre) and Denver (6 miles, a larger centre). That is normal: crematories serve a radius, not a single town, and the drive is priced into collection.
77.4%[1]
The NFDA projected Colorado's cremation rate at 77.4% for 2024.
$600-$1,000[2]
Cremating a 1,000-pound horse was reported to cost about $600-$1,000, depending on location and the price of propane.
3-5% of body weight[3]
Embrace notes cremated remains typically weigh about 3-5% of the pet's original body weight.
Where these figures come from: Embrace Pet Insurance and Extension Horses (eXtension national Cooperative Extension).
Burial, cremation and farm tradition in Colorado
With about 77.4%[1] of people cremated, Colorado leans heavily toward cremation in human funerals. On the farm, the more useful question is what the local ground and rules allow. Where burial is restricted or composting isn't permitted for cattle and sheep, cremation or incineration may be the only on-your-own-terms option left, and it helps that local attitudes to it are already relaxed.
We take the Colorado 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 Englewood, and we would rather show a real number than invent one.
Heat, cold and timing for livestock losses in Englewood
Compost piles can keep working through an Englewood winter if they're built large enough on a thick base and started before the deep cold. A pile that's already hot keeps heating as you add carcasses; starting a new one in January is much harder. Stockpile bedding or wood chips in autumn so you have cover ready, and keep the site away from where snowmelt will run.
Winter is when many calves and lambs are lost, especially in storms during calving or lambing. Around Englewood, have your cold-weather plan ready before January: where carcasses will go, whether the renderer's truck can reach your yard through snow, and how you'll move a frozen animal. A pad near a plowed road makes pickups possible when the lane is drifted in.
Where the money goes when stock die near Englewood
By our estimate, roughly 10,630 US cattle and calves died every day in 2015[4], and USDA's death loss report put the total cost of those losses to producers at $3.87 billion[5]. Disposal is a small slice of that, but it adds up over a year for a herd near Englewood. Price your routes before calving season rather than the morning after a loss, and ask each provider whether the fee changes at weekends or for several animals at once.
The Colorado price table breaks costs down by size; our services page explains what sits behind each line.
Free tool
Livestock mortality planner
Plan disposal capacity and costs for farm losses, from one animal to a herd.
Before you dig or build a pile in Colorado
Rules in Colorado can also limit where a carcass travels. During a disease outbreak, movement controls may stop animals or carcasses leaving the farm, and some areas prescribe the method for specific diseases. If a quarantine or control zone has been declared nearby, check before calling any collector or crematory, and keep the animal covered and apart from the herd until you're told how to proceed.
To find your county or city office in Colorado, start with the official Colorado local government directory.
In the US, dead-stock rules are set state by state, usually by the agriculture department or board of animal health. Most states expect disposal within 24-72 hours[7], and only about 50%[8] of states still have a rendering plant. Where no truck comes, composting and burial fill the gap, but not every state allows both for every species. Your county extension office is the quickest way to find out what applies on your land.
The rules that apply across Colorado (home burial, scattering and who oversees pet cremation) are summarized on our Colorado page. Englewood may add its own conditions, so check with the city or county before digging.
A calm checklist for Englewood farms and families
- Check the animal is dead and that nobody is at risk from a loader, a stressed herd or a steep bank before you approach.
- Photograph the scene when the death seems odd, and jot down the weather and what it had to eat and drink; a vet or insurer may want it.
- Separate the carcass from live animals and from any water source, and cover it against birds and dogs.
- Look up your deadline for getting the animal dealt with and work back from it; hot weather makes it tighter.
- Book the route that fits: a renderer's pickup, a compost pile, a legal burial site or a crematory for a show or family animal.
- Clean up and disinfect the boots and any machinery that touched the carcass before you return to the herd.
Marking the loss, on the farm or in town
Losing a boarded horse can feel strangely distant when you live in the city and the animal lived miles away. The grief is still real. Many owners find it helps to visit the barn once more, collect the halter and blanket, and thank the people who fed and groomed the animal every day. Some ask for a lock of tail or a shoe before the animal leaves.
or look at how readers voted in our polls, Our services overview lays out every option side by side, try the free planning tools, browse in-depth guides or recent articles. If you live between Englewood and Colorado Springs, Lakewood, Aurora and Denver, either page applies. Every other community in Colorado, and all of the United States, is listed too.
Reader polls
What would you choose?
Vote anonymously and see how other readers answered. The results are live counts from people who visit this site, so they show real opinions, not a scientific sample.
When an adult animal dies on your place, what usually happens to it?
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Can you still get a renderer to pick up at your farm?
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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
Livestock mortality planner
Plan disposal capacity and costs for farm losses, from one animal to a herd.
Urn size calculator
Find the urn volume you need from your pet's weight, plus keepsake and sharing options.
Horse aftercare cost comparison
Compare equine cremation, burial, rendering and composting side by side.
Questions people ask
Where are the providers that serve Englewood actually based?
Some are local, and some run from Denver, about 6 miles away. That is normal for a town this size. What matters is the collection time they quote for Englewood and whether the drive is priced into the total, so ask both up front.
Is cremation common in Colorado?
For people, yes: about 77.4%[1] of Colorado 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 Englewood follow the human pattern closely, so cremation is the default most families here start from.
Which nearby towns can I compare with Englewood?
The closest communities we cover are Littleton (about 4 miles), Lakewood (about 6 miles) and Denver (about 6 miles). Providers based in those places often serve Englewood too. Ask each one for a written total that includes collection, so the distance is priced in.
When is the hardest time of year to arrange a burial in Englewood?
January, February, March, November and December: average lows are below freezing then, and frozen ground makes a home grave slow or impossible until it thaws. The other pressure point is July, when highs around 90°F mean a body needs cooling and collecting quickly.
Can I bury livestock when the ground is frozen?
Usually not in practice, and some places restrict it. Frozen ground can stop digging for weeks or months. Many farms rely on a renderer or a compost pile started before the deep cold, and some keep carcasses covered in a designated holding area until the ground thaws, where the rules allow. Ask your agricultural office what's permitted.
What's the difference between incineration and cremation?
They use the same basic equipment. Cremation usually means one animal handled so its own remains can be returned, while incineration is disposal, often several animals at once, with nothing returned. If you want the ashes back, ask for private or individual cremation specifically and get that in writing, including how the animal is identified.
Sources and our estimates
- [1] The NFDA projected Colorado's cremation rate at 77.4% for 2024. NFDA 2024 Cremation & Burial Report state projections (via Occasional Sage), 2024.
- [2] Cremating a 1,000-pound horse was reported to cost about $600-$1,000, depending on location and the price of propane. Extension Horses (eXtension national Cooperative Extension) - Horse Disposal Options, 2019, 2019.
- [3] Embrace notes cremated remains typically weigh about 3-5% of the pet's original body weight. Embrace Pet Insurance - Bury or Cremate Your Dog? Costs, Pros & Cons, 2025.
- [4] About 10,630 U.S. cattle and calves died every day in 2015. Our estimate: 3,880,000 / 365. How we calculate.
- [5] Death loss in U.S. cattle and calves in 2015 was estimated to cost producers $3.87 billion. USDA APHIS NAHMS - Death Loss in U.S. Cattle and Calves Due to Predator and Nonpredator Causes, 2015 (published Dec 2017), 2015.
- [6] Horse rendering costs about $0.14 per pound and composting about $0.23 per pound, both well below incineration at $0.75 per pound, and composting is comparable to a biodigester at $0.25 per pound. Our estimate: $275 / 1,200 lb (composting); $137.50 / 1,000 lb (rendering); $0.25 and $0.75 per lb from extension. How we calculate.
- [7] State rules commonly require dead animals to be buried within 24 to 72 hours of death, especially when euthanized. Cornell Waste Management Institute & Penn State - Horse Mortality: Carcass Disposal Alternatives (2012), 2012.
- [8] Only about 50% of U.S. states have rendering plants, most of them concentrated in the Midwest. Extension Horses (eXtension national Cooperative Extension) - Horse Disposal Options, 2019, 2019.
Ask about a show animal's cremation
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