Estate planning and your pet: Should you consider a Pet Trust?

We share our homes, our beds and our hearts with our pets. Is it any wonder we treat them as if they were our children? For some people, pets are the only family member providing love, affection, entertainment, a listening ear and a reason to get up in the morning. They ask for no more than a place to live, to be well fed, cared for and loved – and if you spoil your pets as badly as I do, a lot of tummy rubs. What they give us in return is “priceless.”

In 2018, Americans spent $72.56 billion on their pets, and that number is expected to rise to $75.38 billion in 2019. That alone illustrates the love we have for our precious animal companions.

But how many of us have planned to protect our pets in the case of an emergency, incapacity or death? At your death, the best-case scenario would be for a friend or family member to take care of your pet, but if there was no plan in place, would you be OK with your pet being dropped off at a humane society, kicked out of the house or in the worst-case scenario, euthanized because your personal representation didn’t want the hassle of rehoming your pet.

As a general rule, your pets cannot inherit your property or money. But according to pet trust expert and attorney Dawn Marie Bates-Buchanan of the Bates-Buchanan & Savitsky Law Group, P.A., in Venice, Fla., if you are not sure that a family member or friend would take care of your pet(s) when you pass on or become incapacitated, you should consider creating a pet trust. This would designate money to provide for the care of the animal and name who is responsible for the animal’s care. This can be a designated person or rescue organization.

Setting up a pet trust will ensure there is a named caregiver and alternates for your animal or animals. You can also secure a plan for your pet’s medical care and maintenance and know that final arrangement will be carried out.

There are hundreds of rescue organizations for every breed and mix of dog, cat, or other animal (rabbit, ferret, etc.). They would be more than willing to receive the animal and money to care for it in foster care, until the animal could find a forever home again.

All 50 states and the District of Columbia have pet trust statutes. The Florida law reads in part: “A trust may be created to provide for the care of an animal alive during the settlor’s lifetime. The trust terminates on the death of the animal or, if the trust was created to provide for the care of more than one animal alive during the settlor’s lifetime, on the death of the last surviving animal.’

A pet trust will allow you to maintain control of your pet should you become incapacitated, select the best administrators and caregivers for your plans and leave a legacy beyond the pet’s life through charitable gifts.

Estate planning documents can include a Durable Power of Attorney for pet care, a pet trust, pet care instructions and a wallet card for emergencies stating that there are pets at home. 

Our culture is replete with instances of the very rich leaving vast sums to their pets. Pop singer Michael Jackson left his chimp Bubbles $2 million, while Oprah Winfrey set aside $30 million, a sizeable portion of her vast estate, as a trust reserved for her five dogs: Luke and Layla (golden retrievers), Sadie (cocker spaniel), Sunny and Lauren (springer spaniels). These are only two examples of a phenomena that spans decades and continents.

Crazy rich people? In most cases, no, just people who love their pets.

Be the person your pet thinks you are. Be prepared.

Ask your Trust Office for guidance in establishing a pet trust for your animals. A good source of information is Animal Care Trust USA (http://animalcaretrust.blogspot.com), whose mission is the keep beloved pets in loving homes. The organization was founded by Peggy Hoyt, daughter of John A. Hoyt, former president, and chief executive officer of the Humane Society of the United States.

Be the person your pet thinks you are.