Legally, Can You Bury Your Pet In Your Yard In Montana?

Recently, one of my daughters lost one of her pets.  Let me tell you, this kid takes pets seriously.  She was absolutely devastated but in her the height of her misery, they took the time to bury the beloved family member in the backyard.

It got me thinking about the legality of it all.  Back when my kids were kids, we had many a hamster funeral at my place.  (Take it from me, hamsters are bad pets and they die quickly.) On the farm, my dad took care of it.  I have no idea what happened to my pets after they died.

So, I looked it up.  Under Montana Law it is totally legal to bury your pets in your yard.  AS LONG AS you can meet the stipulations.  They are:

• You CAN NOT just dump your animal in a lake, creek, river, alley, roadside, etc
• They can be buried on your property IF the animal has been cremated, if the animal is buried, at least, two feet underground, or if your animal is placed in an animal composting facility.

It looks like my daughter did all the right things to keep her deceased pet close according to Montana law.

When my Yorkie died, I took him down and had him cremated.  I know, it seems like a lot, but I move a lot.  I didn't want to just leave him in a town that I might never return to live.  It's nice sometimes to see his little container and reminisce about my old friend.  The vet even made a clay paw print for me and cut off a tiny bit of his hair.  It ran me $75 about 10 years ago.  If you can afford it, this is a nice option.

Here's hoping your pets live forever and you never need this article.