Estate Planning | Making a Difference One Family at a Time

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When you get up there in years you invariably lose people that were close to you. Your spouse and siblings may pass away, you no longer have interactions with your coworkers as a retiree, and you may not spend as much time with your children as you would like to.

There is no substitute for these types of interactions. However, if you were to experience loneliness as a senior you may want to consider purchasing or adopting a dog or perhaps a cat.

Experts have found that pet ownership is actually good for the health of senior citizens. If you have a dog you’re going to want to walk the dog, and this will provide you with regular exercise. In addition to this, dog lovers abound so you get outdoors with a living conversation piece in tow. This can invite conversations with others, and you may make new friends as a result.

There are people who would agree with the above, but they are concerned about the possibility of dying first if they were to get a pet. This is understandable, but there are ways to make provisions for your pet when you’re planning your estate.

One possibility would be to create a pet trust. You convey assets into the trust and name a trustee to administer these funds. The trustee need not be the person who is actually caring for the pet, so you could make sure there is oversight.

In the trust agreement you can actually spell out exactly how you want the pet cared for, including things like what type of food he or she should get and how much exercise time should be provided.

You also name a human beneficiary who would assume ownership of anything left in the trust after the death of the pet.

 

Jeffrey A. Nirenstein, Estate Planning Attorney
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