People often wonder what the value of a pet trust is, but if you have an award-winning dog or have a breeding line of pups, you know how much those animals are worth. On top of that, your pets are prized family members, and you want to make sure that they are cared for if you cannot be there to make sure they have what they need.
One of the options to look into is a pet trust. A pet trust is a trust that specifies how you want your animals to be taken care of if you pass away or are unable to care for them any longer. It may provide financial or other kinds of assets to a beneficiary for the purpose of keeping your companion animals safe and healthy.
How does a pet trust work?
When you set up a pet trust, you determine how you want the assets in that trust to be managed. You may allow them to pass directly to a beneficiary who will serve as the guardian of your animal(s), or you may set up rules that only allow certain assets to pay out at specific times.
For example, if you put $20,000 in the trust, you may decide to have the trust pay out $1,000 per year to the guardian for the life of your pet and let the rest pay out upon the pet’s death. You may also specify that the pet(s) need annual wellness checks and that they must receive medical care when needed. You can be as specific or unspecific as you’d like with the trust.
It’s a good idea to touch on issues such as emergency veterinary care, boarding costs, grooming costs, and check-ups, so that you know that whoever takes over caring for your animal(s) will do what is in their best interests. You can also indicate what you’d like to have happen if your pet passes away, such as if you’d like it buried in a specific place or cremated.
This is a topic that you may want to learn more about if you have pets you’d like to protect. They are valuable as companions, champions, breeders and more, so they should be cared for.