Which little companion are you remembering or planning for?
A Syrian (golden) hamster0%
A dwarf or Roborovski hamster0%
A fancy rat0%
A mouse0%
A gerbil0%
A degu0%
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What rat, hamster and mouse owners are telling us
These totals update live as readers vote. Set them beside published research, which by our estimate converges on ~2/3 cremation; ~30% burial[1] among bereaved owners, and they start to tell a story about very small pets.
- Live counts, updated with every vote
- Clear notes on what they can't show
- Compared with real survey data
Before you read the numbers
How these results are counted
Every figure on the board below comes from a real vote by a visitor. Each browser gets one vote per poll, nobody's name or email is attached, and nothing is pre-filled or adjusted. When a poll has only a handful of votes, the percentages can swing wildly, so give newer polls time.
These aren't a scientific sample. The people voting found a site about rodent aftercare, often while grieving, which is exactly the group we want to hear from but not a cross-section of all pet owners. Add your own answers on the polls page.
We also don't remove answers we find surprising. If a poll shows more people choosing private cremation for a mouse than we'd expect, that's what it shows. The only votes we filter out are obvious floods from a single source, which our system throttles automatically so one person can't swamp a result.
Live results
For a pet this small, which goodbye feels right to you?
Burial in the garden or yard0%
Burial in a deep planter or pot0%
Private cremation, with the ashes back0%
Communal cremation, no ashes back0%
I honestly don't know yet0%
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How many hamsters, rats, mice or gerbils have you lost over the years?
This is my first0%
Two or three0%
Four to six0%
More than I can count on one hand0%
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Is this a child's first experience of a pet dying?
Yes, it's their first loss0%
No, they've been through it before0%
It's a classroom or club pet0%
No children involved, it's just me or us0%
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Would you spend more on aftercare than the pet itself cost?
Yes, the price of the pet has nothing to do with it0%
Up to a point, I'd set a limit0%
I'd rather bury them at home0%
I feel guilty even thinking about it0%
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What would you most want to keep from your rat, hamster or mouse?
A pinch of ashes in a tiny vial0%
A favorite photo, framed0%
Their hammock, wheel or hideout0%
A tiny paw print0%
Just the memories0%
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If your pet shared a cage, what did you do for the ones left behind?
Let them sniff and see the body first0%
Introduced a new companion0%
Gave them extra time and attention0%
My pet lived alone0%
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After losing a short-lived pet, what did you do next?
Adopted another fairly soon0%
Took a long break first0%
Chose a species that lives longer0%
Decided not to have another0%
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Context
How our polls line up with published research
The closest outside benchmarks come from dog and cat owners. In the UK, the Competition and Markets Authority's owner survey found 67%[2] of owners whose pet died in the previous two years had the pet cremated, and the burial figures were 27% home burial; 2% burial elsewhere[3]. In the US, owners asked about their preferred future aftercare leaned toward flame cremation, with home burial close behind.
67%[2]
In the CMA's UK pet owners survey, 67% of owners whose pet died in the previous two years had the pet cremated.
27% home burial; 2% burial elsewhere[3]
In the same CMA survey, 27% of UK owners buried their pet at home and 2% used a pet burial company elsewhere.
40.4% cremation; 34.9% home burial; 1.9% aquamation[4]
Asked their preferred future after-death care, 40.4% of US owners chose traditional flame cremation and 34.9% home burial; 10.7% chose cemetery burial and 1.9% alkaline hydrolysis (aquamation).
Rodent owners have practical reasons to differ: a pet that fits in a shoebox is easy to bury, and a private cremation can cost more than the pet did. Our services page explains each option, and our local pages show how rules and prices shift by area. When you read the burial vs cremation poll, keep in mind that a gap from these figures may say more about body size than about how much people cared.
The feelings behind the votes
What grief research adds to the picture
Our grief-related polls sit alongside a large UK pet-loss survey by the RSPCA, where 34.5%[5] of bereaved owners had been told "it's just a pet" and 57.1%[6] felt they had to hide their grief. Rodent owners, whose pets are often seen as starter animals, may feel that dismissal even more sharply.
If you've voted that you've lost many small pets, or that this is a child's first loss, our guides on grief after losing a rodent and talking with children were written for you.
Questions nobody else asks
Species, cage mates and keepsakes: the rodent-only results
Some of our polls have no outside benchmark at all. The species poll is one example. The only large dataset we know of, the VetCompass study of UK pet hamsters, found 1.75 years[7] was the median age at death for pet hamsters, with Syrians making up most of the hamsters seen. In the US, 37%[8] of small-animal households keep a rabbit, with hamsters well behind at 18%.
Our species results show which rodents our readers actually keep, which helps us decide whether to write more about rats, gerbils or dwarf hamsters. The cage-mates and keepsakes polls do the same for practical questions, like whether surviving companions were allowed to say goodbye, or whether a hammock mattered more than ashes.
If a result surprises you, it may be worth reading our private vs communal guide for rodents, which explains why so many small-pet owners weigh these choices differently from dog and cat owners.
Using the results
What to take from the results, and what not to
- Use them for reassurance. Whatever you chose, you'll almost certainly see others who chose the same.
- Don't use them to decide for you. The popular choice depends on who happened to vote this month.
- Look at the spread, not just the winner. A close split tells you there's no single right answer.
- Check the vote count. A result based on a few dozen votes is a hint, not a finding.
Would you spend more on aftercare than the pet itself cost?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Next steps
From poll results to your own decision
If the results have helped you see your options more clearly, the next step is working out what they'd cost and involve for your pet. The cremation cost calculator gives a range, and the ashes weight estimator shows how much would come back from a private cremation.
When you're ready, send us your details and we'll look for small-pet aftercare near you. You're also welcome to simply read, vote and leave. That's a perfectly good use of this page.
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.
For a pet this small, which goodbye feels right to you?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Is this a child's first experience of a pet dying?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
How many hamsters, rats, mice or gerbils have you lost over the years?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Questions people ask
Are these poll results a reliable survey of rodent owners?
No. They're a live, self-selected count of visitors who chose to vote, so they describe our readers rather than all owners. We show them because very little research exists on rodent aftercare, and honest, labeled reader data is more useful than nothing.
How often are the results updated?
Continuously. Each vote is added to the totals as soon as it's recorded, so percentages can shift from day to day. If you revisit later, you may see a different picture, especially on newer polls with fewer votes.
Why compare with dog and cat research?
Because it's the closest published benchmark we have. Large surveys of how owners handle a pet's death rarely separate out hamsters, rats or mice. Comparing with dog and cat data at least shows whether rodent owners seem to make different choices, and why size might be the reason.
Do you share or sell poll data?
Poll answers are anonymous and aren't linked to names or emails. We use the totals on this site to understand readers and decide what to write next. If we ever quote a figure elsewhere, we'll describe it as reader poll data, not research.
Can I see results without voting?
Yes. This page shows the live totals for every poll, whether or not you've voted. On the polls page itself, each poll reveals its results after you answer, so other people's choices don't nudge yours before you've decided.
Sources and our estimates
- [1] UK and US survey evidence converges on roughly two-thirds of bereaved owners choosing cremation (UK 67%; US 68% ever) and about 29-32% choosing burial. Our estimate: mean(67, 68) = 67.5; burial range 29% (UK) to 32% (US). How we calculate.
- [2] In the CMA's UK pet owners survey, 67% of owners whose pet died in the previous two years had the pet cremated. UK Competition and Markets Authority - Veterinary services for household pets, Provisional decision report Part A (Oct 2025), 2025.
- [3] In the same CMA survey, 27% of UK owners buried their pet at home and 2% used a pet burial company elsewhere. UK Competition and Markets Authority - Veterinary services for household pets, Provisional decision report Part A (Oct 2025), 2025.
- [4] Asked their preferred future after-death care, 40.4% of US owners chose traditional flame cremation and 34.9% home burial; 10.7% chose cemetery burial and 1.9% alkaline hydrolysis (aquamation). Cooney, Kogan, Brooks, Ellis - Pet Owners' Expectations for Pet End-of-Life Support and After-Death Body Care, Topics in Companion Animal Medicine (2020), 2020.
- [5] 34.5% of bereaved pet owners were told 'it's just a pet'. RSPCA — Pet Loss Survey Results, 2026.
- [6] 57.1% felt they had to hide their grief after a pet died, and 57.8% perceive stigma around pet loss. RSPCA — Pet Loss Survey Results, 2026.
- [7] UK pet hamsters had a median age at death of 1.75 years (range up to 3.65 years); 73% of hamsters seen were Syrian (golden) hamsters. O'Neill DG et al. Demography, disorders and mortality of pet hamsters under primary veterinary care in the UK in 2016. J Small Anim Pract, 2022 (PMID 35732354), 2022.
- [8] 37% of US small-animal-owning households have a rabbit, 23% a guinea pig and 18% a hamster. American Pet Products Association (APPA) 2025 National Pet Owners Survey release, 2025.
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