Angels Rest and Angels Overlook: Places of peace and healing

Angels Rest and Angels Overlook are places of exceptional peace and quiet beauty, and they are much more than final resting places for Sanctuary animals and cherished companions of Best Friends members, staff, and pet lovers. They are tributes to the enduring bond we share with animals.

Set against the vastness of Angel Canyon in the red rocks of southern Utah, wind chimes softly sound with the slightest breeze, and each marker celebrates the memory of a beloved pet. Together, they remind us of the connectedness of all living things.

A visit to Angels Rest

To get a sense of the beauty and tranquility of Angels Rest, please watch this guided video tour.

Monthly animal blessings

Each month, a blessing is held at Angels Rest to honor beloved Sanctuary animals, as well as pets of Best Friends members, staff, and pet lovers who have recently passed.

Blessings provide a way for people of all creeds and backgrounds to commemorate the lives of special pets and find healing alongside those who understand and value these extraordinary bonds.

Our blessing ceremonies are held at Angels Rest on the last Thursday of every month. You can watch the ceremony virtually via Best Friends’ YouTube channel or on Facebook the following week.

All are welcome to attend in person. In the event of inclement weather, email angelsrest@bestfriends.org to confirm the time and location.

You can view past blessings here.

Experience the serenity in person

Walk the peaceful grounds or take a guided tour of Angels Rest and Angels Overlook. Both are open to visitors during daylight hours; no appointment is necessary.

If you'd like to take a guided tour, walking tours of Angels Rest start at 9 a.m. every Wednesday, and Angels Overlook tours occur on select Tuesdays each month at 10 a.m. We invite you to check ahead for available dates and book your tour.

You may also opt to volunteer at either memorial site.

A place to remember your pet

If you’d like to pay tribute to your pet or the pet of a loved one, wind chimes can be sent directly to you.

Or you can choose to have wind chimes, a memorial brick, or a marker placed at Angels Rest or Angel Overlook here at the Sanctuary — one of the most beautiful settings on Earth in which to memorialize our treasured animals.

Order a memorial marker or tribute

For information about requesting a placement for your pet at Angels Rest, please contact angelsrest@bestfriends.org or download a PDF of our brochure.

Tokens of remembrance for pets we’ve lost

At Best Friends, the ritual of leaving stones or tokens on the graves of animals has become a cherished and meaningful tradition.

Leaving a stone represents your loving support for those connected to this special pet and acknowledges and honors the bond that exists between them forever. The permanence and the lasting presence of the rocks is a symbol of that love and connection.

To find tokens to memorialize your pet, or to find other gifts that comfort, you can browse our memorial gifts for you or a friend grieving the loss of a pet.

The memory of your pet can leave a lasting legacy

Celebrating the memory of your pet means the love you share lives on. You'll be helping the animals you love at the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary — and homeless animals all around the country — live their best lives when you create an online memorial, make a donation in memory, or order a meaningful pet remembrance gift.

Remembering your pet saves lives

About Best Friends Animal Society

Best Friends is working to end the killing of dogs and cats in U.S. shelters in part by getting more pets out of shelters and into loving homes.

We’ve come a long way since the first known city reached no-kill in 1994, and now we’re closer than ever to making the entire country no-kill. Today, nearly 2,500 shelters are no-kill throughout the U.S. — and over 600 more are just 100 pets or fewer away from reaching that milestone.

Best Friends is committed to working with passionate people like you to save homeless pets through adoption, volunteering, fostering, and advocacy. In addition to our lifesaving centers around the U.S, we also founded and run the nation's largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals.

Working together, we can save homeless pets in our communities and secure a better future for our best friends. Together, we will bring the whole country to no-kill.