You no longer have to say Fido went to the farm.
A new method of body disposal called “aquamation” is reportedly rising in popularity among pet owners who don’t want to bury their recently deceased pets in the backyard.
The more “environmentally friendly” process — also known as alkaline hydrolysis — involves dousing the body with a decomposition-accelerating mixture of water and alkaline chemicals, which then produces effluent.
The final by-product is a type of wastewater that contains various salts, sugars, amino acids and peptides, is considered drainage safe and disposes of any tissue on the animal, leaving only bones and liquid behind.
According to one Seattle-based company, Resting Waters, the new burial service offers “true compassion and care for your departed companion” while providing a “gentle and environmentally responsible water process.”
The bones can subsequently be ground into ash that pet owners can take home.
The Post reached out to Resting Waters for comment.
“Aquamation is more like natural decomposition than any other method of disposition,” reads the Resting Waters site. “At the end of the process, your companion’s physical components have been returned to their natural elements, dispersed in water – with only the solid bone remaining, pathogen and disease free.”
According to the site, the price varies on the size of the animal — starting at $140 and exceeding $550 for pets that weigh more than 151 pounds.
The site also offers memorials services and keepsakes.
The latter mementos include, on the lower end of the range, a clay paw print impression (starting at $25) and skeletal preservation ($200) on the higher end.
Aquamation is legal in 28 U.S. states for people who seek to avoid enlarging their carbon footprint through cremation.
States that have legalized the process include Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii and Idaho, among others.
Aquamation is not the only “green” method of saying goodbye to beloved furry friends.
“Green funerals,” which became legal in 2019, have also seen a rise in interest.
The process includes turning the deceased’s body into compost by way of a “mixture of organic materials that are combined to expedite the breakdown of the human body,” according to a TikTok posted by Return Home Terramation.
“Over the course of 60-90 days, we constantly monitor the oxygen flow, temperature, and moisture level inside of those vessels,” explained worker Brienna Smith. “This constant monitoring allows us to make adjustments as needed to ensure an unproblematic terramation.”
Smith said that once the loved one’s body is done decomposing, the compost is shipped back to the family to use as they see fit.
