What is a pet trust? A pet trust is a legally sanctioned arrangement
providing for the care and maintenance of one or more companion animals if the
pet owner dies or becomes disabled. The designated trustee holds the property
in trust, making regular payments to a designated caregiver who provides the
pets with care as specified in the trust.
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What’s unique about the PetGuardian Pet Trust Plan? The
PetGuardian Pet Trust Plan includes comprehensive forms that enable a selected caregiver
to continue the care to which your pets are accustomed. We incorporate language
used in living trust forms, allowing for immediate provisions for your pets
if you die or become ill or incapacitated. The PetGuardian Pet Trust Plan is
extremely affordable, and changes can be made easily. Finally, Best Friends
Animal Society will help locate a backup caregiver, in the event the designated
caregivers are unable or unwilling to accept responsibility for the pets.
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What is the advantage of purchasing a Pet Trust Plan through PetGuardian versus working with an estate planner? Most estate-planning attorneys
are not equipped to provide comprehensive pet trust solutions. Additionally,
lawyer fees for drawing up a simple trust may range from $1,000 to $2,000. Minor
changes to the trust can result in additional fees of $200 or more when working
with a typical estate planner. By contrast, the PetGuardian Pet Trust Plan costs
only $500. Changes to the forms are free when completed online, with only a
nominal charge for changes submitted by mail. And, because PetGuardian benefits
from an exclusive relationship with Best Friends Animal Society, you can be
assured of the continued well being of your pets. Thanks to its extensive database
and nationwide network, Best Friends Animal Society is well equipped to find
pets an appropriate home, should this become necessary.
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How should I fund my PetGuardian Pet Trust Plan? PetGuardian
provides a cost analysis to estimate the appropriate level of funding. The cost
analysis is an estimate derived from the cost of the current care you outline on your
PetGuardian application. These costs include food, veterinary expenses, medications,
emergency care, burial or cremation fees. This calculation takes into consideration
the life expectancy of your pets based on their current age, anticipated care as your
pets age in addition to the annual rate of inflation. It is important to fund the
plan at an appropriate level, because overfunded pet trusts have been subject
to challenge in court. Estate planners recommend that pet owners fund a Pet Trust
Plan at an appropriate level to avoid this. You are encouraged to discuss the various options for
funding your Pet Trust Plan with your attorney and financial planner. Establishing
a separate fund as part of the PetGuardian plan can ensure that your pets will be cared
for should anything happen to you. PetGuardian recommends that you discuss with your
attorney or financial planner how to establish this fund especially if you already have
an existing estate plan.
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How specific can my instructions be? PetGuardian
encourages the pet owner to provide comprehensive pet information on the PetGuardian
application, including (but not limited to) health history, eating habits, behavior,
special needs, required medications, exercise regimen, special veterinary care, and
the owner’s wishes for final disposition of the pets.
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How should I select my trustees and caregivers? Selection
of trustees and caregivers is perhaps the most important responsibility of the
pet owner. The trustee and the caregiver can be a friend, relative, or other
reliable person you feel confident will put the well being of your pets first.
The trustee will administer the trust plan, make payments to the caregiver,
and monitor the welfare of your pets. The trustee must therefore be willing
to administer the property for the benefit of the pets and to expend the time
and effort necessary to deal with trust plan administration matters. The caregiver
will receive payments from the trustee and provide continuous care based on
your detailed instructions. These expectations should be discussed with the
prospective caregiver before the caregiver is confirmed, to make certain he
or she is willing to assume the obligation of caring for your pets, especially
if the pets require medical care or other special attention as they age. As
a practical matter, you should take into consideration the life expectancy of
your pets when selecting caregivers.
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Can the trustee and caregiver be the same person? In general,
estate planners recommend that the trustee and caregiver not be the same person,
to avoid any possible conflict of interest and to help ensure that the pets
are cared for as specified by the pet owner.
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What if I don't have two caregivers? - You might consider identifying a
lifetime care program or other animal welfare organization that will
agree to serve as your caregiver(s). Please refer to our comprehensive
listing of lifetime care programs.
If you make arrangements with a program to serve as one of your caregivers, please
include appropriate contact names and contact information on the
PetGuardian Pet Trust application.
- If you are unable to identify a caregiver for your pets, you might also consider appointing an individual to lead an "animal care panel" that may include several individuals, such as veterinarians, family members and friends. The animal care panel would be charged with the responsibility of locating a suitable caregiver should you die or become incapacitated. The panel could use various means to locate a proper caregiver such as advertising in a local newspaper and consulting with local animal welfare organizations. The panel would interview the prospective caregivers and select the person(s) it felt would provide the best care for your pet(s). (More about "animal care panels" can be found at www.2ndchance4pets.org)
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What is the PetGuardian Goodwill Program? Best Friends and PetGuardian
have created a special fund to help defray costs for pets if insufficient funds have been
provided in a PetGuardian Pet Trust Plan. The program relies on donations only. If
you would like to make a donation to this fund please contact info@petguardian.com.
If a PetGuardian Pet Trust Plan has funds remaining when pets pass away, the balance
can be allocated to this Goodwill program, for the work of Best Friends or for any other charity
that you select to designate in your PetGuardian Pet Trust Plan.
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What are Emergency ID and Wallet Cards?
These cards are provided by PetGuardian so that in the event of an emergency critical information about your pets is posted in your home and carried with you in your wallet. This information will alert others to be aware of the pets in your home and who should be contacted to take care of your pets. What if you require additional Emergency ID and Wallet Cards? Current PetGuardian customers can download & print additional cards. Extra cards can also be mailed to current customers who send an email to info@petguardian.com or by completing our email contact form.
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Will PetGuardian expand its service to include other pets besides cats, dogs, horses & birds? We are seriously considering this option.
We would love to hear from you to understand if expanding this service would
benefit you and your pets. Please contact us at feedback@petguardian.com.
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Will PetGuardian expand its service outside the US? We have
initiated discussions to explore how to share the PetGuardian concept outside
the US. We hope to encourage pet owners around the world about the importance
of securing a plan for their pets’ future.
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What other options are available to pet owners who are concerned about the lifetime care of their pets? We encourage you to review information on our website including the section Alternatives to Pet Trusts under the PetGuardian Community. Another excellent resource is www.2ndchance4pets.org. 2nd Chance 4 Pets is a 501(c)(3)nonprofit organization with the mission to reduce the number of pets unnecessarily euthanized each year due to the death or incapacity of their human companions. This nonprofit, volunteer-run organization has established a special focus for providing assistance to pet owners with terminal illnesses and those who care for large numbers of rescued pets. Supporting their work will help reduce the thousands of pets unnecessarily euthanized each year and provide pet owners with peace of mind.
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¹ Pet owners are encouraged to provide these trust forms to their attorneys, who can incorporate the forms into existing estate plans.
² If your designated caregivers are unable to provide care, Best Friends Animal Society will use its extensive nationwide network to carefully and thoughtfully locate an appropriate substitute home for your pets. If you have designated two potential caregivers and set aside an appropriate fund, Best Friends will help locate an alternate caregiver should anything happen to your initial caregivers. Trustees should contact Best Friends to discuss activating the back up service should a new caregiver for the pets need to be identified. Trustees must be able to provide verification of available funds. Trustees must also agree to continue their responsibilities for the pet owner who is no longer able to care for their pets due to death or disability.
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