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Pets usually have shorter life spans than humans, but what if a pet owner becomes ill, incapacitated or dies first? Animals who outlive their owners face uncertain fates. Under the best circumstances, a family member or friend cares for the pet for the rest of its life. If not, the pet goes to a shelter, is euthanized or is simply let out the front door. The Humane Society of the United States estimates six to eight million dogs and cats enter shelters annually. Only half are adopted.
In the confusion after an unexpected illness, accident or death, pets may be overlooked. In some cases, pets are discovered in the person's home days, or weeks, later. To prevent this from happening, the Humane Society suggests these simple precautions:
How can owners ensure that pets will continue to receive proper care if something happens? The best way is by making formal arrangements that specifically cover the care of a pet.
Leaving money to a pet in your will sounds like a good idea, but is not possible. In our current legal system, an animal cannot own property and is legally considered personal property. A pet owner could leave their pet and some money to a person in their will and hope that person will care for their pet, but that person has no legal obligation to use the money for the pet. Also, wills may take weeks to be executed and could be contested.
The Humane Society recommends a pet trust, instead. Unlike a will, a pet trust can provide for a pet immediately and can apply not only if the owner dies, but also if he or she becomes ill or incapacitated. The pet owner can create a trust, put funds in the trust for the pet's care, name a caregiver for the pet and name a trustee to manage the money and oversee the caregiver. The caregiver has to use the money to take care of the pet. If the money is used for something else, a judge can order the caregiver to return the money and also can remove the caregiver and appoint a second choice as new caregiver.
It is important to seek the advice of an attorney who both understands your desire to provide for your pet and can help you create a will and trust that best provides for it. The executor of the estate, as well as the pet's designated caregiver, should have copies of the documents so that he or she can look after the pet immediately.
The Humane Society has a free fact sheet, "Providing For Your Pet's Future Without You," that outlines the steps to take to provide for a pet's future.
Report on personal care aides' earnings
A recent analysis by PHI National found that more states are paying personal care aides poverty wages. Ohio is one of 36 states in which personal care aides make less than 200 percent of the poverty level, or $10.42 per hour. In Ohio, the median wage is $9.91 an hour, thus many personal care aides may qualify for income-based state and federal benefit programs.
Resource widgets available
What percent of grandparents are supporting their grandchildren in the U.S.? To learn this and other facts on grandparents, check the Administration on Aging's statistical widget. Tips on the healthiest foods to eat are featured in the nutrition e-cards and information on fun exercises are available in the Get Active e-cards. To share this data with visitors to your site, click the "share" button on the widget and the code of the widget will display.