The Pet Problem
By ALYSON MARTIN and NUSHIN RASHIDIAN
Anne-Marie Schiro, 76, was determined that what had happened to a friend’s pets would not happen to hers.
Ms. Schiro’s friend, who died after a long illness, had made arrangements for a caregiver to take one of her cats. She assumed her son would take the other. But after her death, the caregiver backed out and the son decided that the additional cats — he already had two — were just too much. In the end, one cat was adopted into a new home, but the other was taken to a shelter.
“I’m going to make sure that something like that doesn’t happen,” Ms. Schiro said. “A lot of people will promise to take care of somebody’s animal, and then it comes down to it and they don’t want it or it’s too much trouble or it’s not well behaved or they find some excuse.”
Ms. Schiro’s solution? A document called a pet trust. Ms. Schiro lives in Manhattan with her 104-year-old mother, Anna Schiro, and three cats. The document specifies that if the cats — Lou Lou, Mimi and Johnny — outlive Ms. Schiro and her mother, they will be taken to a retirement community at the North Shore Animal League America, where they will live out their days, paid for by money set aside for them.
“This way I know that they will not end up at a shelter, where they would be killed because they’re too old to be adopted,” Ms. Schiro said.
The pet trust is a little-known legal option for the elderly and caregivers worried about what will happen to beloved animals following the deaths of their owners. In the document, the owner specifies a “guardian” who will carry out the owner’s wishes for care, including instructions for what food the animal should eat and how the pet should live. Funds or property, or both, must be set aside to pay for the care.
Not every state permits pet trusts. Among those that do not are Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Vermont and West Virginia, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. But including a pet in a will is not always a suitable alternative.
Wills provide only for how property, including pets, should be dispersed. Usually they do not include details about caring for the animals, and instructions for pet care are not legally enforceable in a will, said Rachel Hirschfeld, a lawyer who drew up Ms. Schiro’s trust. And if a pet is simply included in a will without a separate agreement, the state may decide the pet’s fate, because a judge can make changes to wills.
Leona Helmsley, the real estate tycoon, famously created a pet trust in her will for the benefit of her Maltese, Trouble. She left $12 million for the care of the dog after she died in 2007, but a judge later reduced the amount to $2 million. (Trouble died last year.)
If a full-blown trust seems like too much trouble, Ms. Hirschfeld has created a streamlined and less expensive online “pet protection agreement.” It does not require a lawyer.
Without an agreement of some sort in place ahead of time, a son or daughter caring for an elderly parent may unexpectedly wind up with a furry responsibility on top of their grief and funeral planning. It’s rarely a welcome development.
“I think that people feel guilty. You know, like, ‘Oh, my God, do we have to take Mom’s old cat? She’s peeing and pooping all over the place. What are we going to do? No one will take her,’” Ms. Hirschfeld said. “It’s a terrible burden on those who are left behind.”
Often pet owners overestimate the likelihood that a spouse or a family member will be willing to care for an animal, Ms. Hirschfeld said. One of her clients asked her husband if he would take care of the woman’s dog in the event she became seriously ill or died. She was shocked when he said no.
After asking her friends, the groomer and a neighbor, the woman found a number of people willing to take care of her dog. A pet protection agreement made it clear that the responsibility for caring for her dog would be left to someone in this network.
“Elderly pet owners should have a plan for back-up care in case they become unable to provide care themselves or in the event that their pet might outlive them,” said Gail Buchwald, senior vice president of the A.S.P.C.A.’s Adoption Center. “This is a tragic and painful concept to grapple with, but it must be considered.”
Ms. Schiro has encouraged many of her friends to draw up pet trusts but has found that some resist. “They will not face the fact that they are not going to live forever,” she said. “They think that they will always be there for their pets.”
