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Your Greyhound and Estate Planning

© Judy A Tomlinson

One thing most pet owners have in common is the problem of what to do with their pets when they (the owners) die or become incapacitated. For years, the law has regarded animals as tangible personal property, much like your furniture and lawn mower. A person cannot, by law, leave money to inanimate objects.

Of course, pet owners are very determined people - leave it to them to find a way to ensure their pets well-being. What many pet owners do is leave the pets in their will as a gift to family members or friends. They then also leave that person a sum of money in order to help with the financial needs of the animal. If this is what you plan to do, be sure to discuss the plan with the person you are leaving the pet to. You want to make sure that they are trustworthy, and will, to the best of their ability, care for your pet as you would want them to. Once the person takes control of your pet and the sum of money, there is no law that will ensure they are doing what you wanted. So be very careful in choosing the guardian for your greyhound.

Fortunately, the law is changing Attorney Janet Barrick wrote an article in the fall '96 issue of Celebrating Greyhounds titled "Who Will Care For My Pets?" The article is also on her web page. In her article she explains the Model Probate Code of Law which has been adopted in more than 18 states. In short, what this law does is allow residents of these states to set up trusts for their pets.

The following sentences are from Ms. Barrick's article. "A trust is an arrangement in which legal title to something of value is transferred to one party (called a "trustee") who manages and administers that something for the benefit of a second party (called a "beneficiary"). So the new law allows pet owners to name a trustee who will care for their pets, and the pets are now the beneficiaries of the trust!" Please read her entire article to get more information.

Pet Legacy, a site which discusses estate planning for household pets, has more data on this subject.

John B. Palley, Attorney at Law and a member of the Animal Legal Defense Fund, has written an article titled "Who Will Care for Oscar and Bailey When I Die?" He suggests retaining a qualified estate-planning lawyer to assist in putting your will together. He suggests that you need a lawyer to draft a durable (a durable power of attorney simply means that if you become incapacitated or incompetent the P.O.A. remains effective) power of attorney and a will.

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