We all want the best for our pets. They are family, and like fa
mily, we want to make sure they are well cared for at all times.
But what happens if you can no longer look after your pet, either temporarily or permanently? Fortunately, there are several resources available to help you make a plan for when the unexpected happens.
Preparing for Short Term Unavailability
According to Dr. Susan Bonilla of Passionate Paws Animal Hospital, “the same preparation and planning we put into our own healthcare should likewise apply to our furry family members.”
In an article published on whole-dog-journal.com, author Nancy Kerns offers the following suggestions:
- Consider making an emergency kit. The kit should include at least two weeks’ worth of your pet’s food and any needed medications, preventives, and supplements.
- Write down detailed instructions on how and when to administer medications and food.
- Make sure you keep up-to-date contact information for your veterinarian, groomer, daycare/boarding facility, and a family member or friend that is authorized to make decisions for your pet.
- Don’t forget to also let your designated caregiver know what personal belongings such as bedding and toys should stay with your pet(s).”
- If you aren’t well, make sure you have back-up caregivers.
“We all should have at least one person, and a backup or two (if possible), who could (and would) care for our [pets] for a day or three in case we are incapacitated, short-term, for any reason,” Kerns advises, adding that pet owners should also account for longer-term caregivers as well.
Setting up a Pet Trust
Whole Dog Journal also advises that in the event of you passing away, it’s worthwhile to have a trust set up.
“Traditional pet trusts provide the owner with significant control over the animal’s care, such as by specifying who will be the trustee, who will be the beneficiary/caretaker, what pet-related expenses the trustee will pay, what type of care the pet will receive, what will happen if the caretaker can no longer care for the animal, whether the animal will be buried or cremated after death, and where the pet’s remains will be interred or stored,” author CJ Puotinen writes.
According to Cornell Law School, there are three types of pet trusts: honorary, traditional, and statutory:
- Honorary pet trust: an honorary pet trust involves a conditional bequest of a pet and leaving a sum of money to an individual who is designated to care for the decedent’s pet. However, courts generally hold that these types of trust unenforceable, and therefore, honorary pet trusts should be avoided.
- Traditional pet trust: in a traditional pet trust, the will leaves the pet to a caretaker and the trustee is required to make distributions of funds to the caretaker to cover expenses for the pet. Traditional trusts afford the owner great control over the future care of their pet. For example, the trust may specify the type of care the pet will receive, what happens if the caretaker is no longer able to care for the pet, or the disposition of the remains of the pet after it dies.
- Statutory pet trust: in a statutory pet trust, the pet is the direct beneficiary of the trust. No human beneficiary is required. The pet is left to the trust and the trustee becomes the owner. A caretaker then provides day-to-day care for the pet.
Our pets can’t speak or provide for themselves, so it is the pet owner’s responsibility to ensure there are no gaps in their care – even when the unspeakable happens. For more information on setting up trusts and making contingency plans for your pet(s), visit the ASPCA website.