How Backyard Pet Burial Can Harm Wildlife in the Eastern Great Plains
For many families in Fargo and surrounding rural communities, burying a beloved pet at home seems like a peaceful and respectful choice. However, in the Eastern Great Plains, this common practice can unintentionally put local wildlife—and even other pets—at serious risk.
One major concern is the exposure of scavengers to euthanasia drugs like pentobarbital. These drugs remain active in the bodies of buried animals for months and can be lethal to any animal that digs them up. In Fargo and nearby areas, scavengers like red foxes, coyotes, raccoons, and domestic dogs are all known to investigate disturbed soil. Rural farms often attract these animals, increasing the risk of exposure in agricultural zones (North Dakota Game and Fish Department, 2022).
Ingestion of just small amounts of pentobarbital can lead to sedation, coma, or death in non-target species. This is especially dangerous for working farm dogs or free-roaming cats that may come into contact with buried remains. Even if remains are buried properly, thaw cycles in the Red River Valley region can shift soil and expose shallow graves, particularly during spring melt (U.S. Geological Survey, 2021).
In rural communities, livestock predators already challenge farmers. Introducing the scent of decomposing organic matter in a burial site may unintentionally draw in scavengers or even larger carnivores, escalating wildlife conflicts (Stoner et al., 2020).
Environmentally safer alternatives like aquamation prevent this risk entirely, ensuring our ecosystem—and the animals within it—remain unharmed by our choices.
Sources
North Dakota Game and Fish Department. (2022). Urban Wildlife in North Dakota. https://gf.nd.gov
Stoner, K. J., Miller, J. R., & Raithel, J. D. (2020). Carnivore scavenging in agricultural zones. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 44(3), 510–517.
U.S. Geological Survey. (2021). Ground freeze/thaw dynamics in the Red River Valley. https://usgs.gov
