Pet Trust Option Could Provide Care For Your Pet After One’s Death
PUBLISHERS UPDATE: Here is one of my favorites posts about Pet Trusts, from back on April 30th, 2022! We have a ton of interesting articles in our archives of the Ohio Family Law Blog. Use our Search tool and enjoy a few oldie but goodies!
Pet Trust Allows For Care Of Pet After Owner’s Death
When creating an estate plan, one indicates who should receive the remaining assets of the individual at the time of one’s death. However, at the time of death, what happens to one’s pets? Although most of us view our pets as beloved members of the family, in the eyes of the law, pets are considered personal property. Therefore, pets can be bequeathed in a will or trust just like any other personal property. How does one ensure that one’s pets are properly cared for? A couple of options may be considered.
If you have someone in mind that you trust to care for your pet or pets, a pet trust is an available option. Ohio Revised Code section 5804.08 allows for pet trusts in our state. It states the during an individual’s lifetime, he or she can set up a pet trust to provide for the care of a pet or pets and to terminate upon the death of the pet, or if more than one, upon the death of the last pet. You must indicate who is to care for your pet and who is to administer the money and how the funds of the trust are to be used.
Obviously, you want to fund the trust with enough money to care for your pet for the pet’s anticipated life expectancy. The greatest flaw with a pet trust, in my opinion, is the lack of oversight. Although a trustee has a fiduciary duty to the beneficiary, what if the trustee fails to carry out his/her/its duties properly? If the beneficiary is a person, he or she can always sue the trustee or ask a court to remove the trustee. A pet does not have that ability. Therefore, in setting up a pet trust, one must choose a trustee very carefully to ensure that the trust funds are properly used for care of one’s pet or pets.
Second Option: Pet Adoption Agency
What if one has no one in mind to care for one’s pets? You may want to look into your local pet adoption agency or agencies to see what options are available. For example, here in the Dayton area, SICSA Pet Adoption and Wellness Center has a guardianship program in which you can bequeath your dogs or cats to SICSA to care for and provide a loving home so long as certain financial provisions are made to assist SICSA with the cost of care. The minimum cost is based upon the age of the pet. In one’s will or trust one would indicate that one’s pets are bequeathed to SICSA along with the required financial commitment. To learn more about the SICSA Guardianship Program, click here.
A third choice is to leave your pet or pets outright to an individual with a certain sum of money. While this option is the most simple, you must assume that the individual will outlive your pet or pets and also that the individual will use the money for the care of your pet or pets although he or she has no legal obligation to do so.
Hopefully, this article will provide some direction in choosing what is best for you in planning for the care of your pet or pets and incorporating it into your estate plan.
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Joseph Balmer manages the Probate, Trust and Estate Administration department at Dayton, Ohio, law firm, Holzfaster, Cecil, McKnight & Mues, and has been certified by the Ohio State Bar Association as a specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law since 2006.
