More Information

 

Message from a pet whose owner did not make plans


Other Websites:
    2nd Chance 4 Pets
    Animal Legal & Historical Center (Wills and Trusts Issues Related to Companion Animals)
    The National Anti-Vivisection Society
    GaPetTrust.com (website of the Atlanta, Georgia law firm of Lane & Karlo, LLP)

     My Pet Child (computes cost of dog ownership)
    PetGuardian
    Pet Protection Agreement (prepared by Rachel Hirschfeld and hosted by LegalZoom)
    Pet-Trust.net (website of New York attorney Rachel Hirschfeld)

    SimpleDollar.com (costs of ownership of cats and dogs; helpful for determining amount to leave for animal's care)
    ValeofCats.com

 

Articles & Books:
    AARP, Four-Legged Heirs, AARP, July/Aug. 2004, at 16.
    Adding Fido to Your Will, CBSNews.com, Feb. 12, 2005.
    Association of the Bar of the City of New York, Pet Trusts & Estate Law: How to Prevent Your Companion from Becoming a Statistic in the Event of Your Death, Disability or a Catastrophic Event (2004).
    Association of the Bar of the City of New York, Providing for Your Pets.
    Gerry W. Beyer, Estate Planning for Pets, Prob. & Prop., July/Aug. 2001, at 7 (winner of  Probate & Property 2001 Excellence in Writing Award -- Best Overall Article (probate and trust)).
    Gerry W. Beyer, Estate Planning for Pets, Probate Solutions.
    Gerry W. Beyer, Pet Animals -- What Happens When Their Humans Die?, 40 Santa Clara L. Rev. 617 (2000).
    Gerry W. Beyer, Pet Trusts Basics -- Q&A With Professor Gerry W. Beyer, Companion, Summer 2005, at 4.
    Gerry W. Beyer, Trusts and Planning Issues for the Family Pet or Other Valuable Animal, in State Bar of Texas, Advanced Estate Planning & Probate Course 2005, ch. 3 (2005).
    Robert Blizard, Murdaugh Madden, Roger Kindler, & Nancy Peterson, Helping Your Clients Provide for Pets in Estate Plans, NAPFA Advisor, Mar. 2005, at 18.
   Robert E. Blizard, Roger A. Kindler, Murdaugh S. Madden, and Nancy Peterson, Helping Clients Provide for Pets in Their Estate Plans, Prob. & Prop., Nov./Dec. 2004, at 52.
    Sandra Bolan, Estate Planning Should Include a "Pet Provision," Dogs, Dogs, Dogs!
    M. Keith Branyon, What Do You Do With Four-Legged Beneficiaries?, Legal Assistants Division, State Bar of Texas, LAU Seminar (2001).
    Christine Cave, Monkeying Around With Our Pets' Futures: Why Oklahoma Should Adopt a Pet-Trust Statute, 55 Okla. L. Rev. 627 (2002).
    David Congalton, When Your Pet Outlives You (2002).
    James L. Dam, Trusts to Care for Pets After Death Catching On, Lawyer's Weekly USA, July 22, 2002.
    Suzette Daniels, An Introduction to Pet in Wills and Pet Euthanasia (2004).
    Anabelle de Gale, Law Saves 'Orphaned' Pets from Leading a Dog's Life, Miami Harold, January 15, 2003.
    Janet L. Grove, Estate Planning for Twenty-First Century Families, 91 Ill. B. J. 631, at 634 (2003).
    Miriam Abrams Goodman, XYZ Pet Trust (sample language based on Colorado law).
    Joseph D. Growney, The Need for an Enforceable Pet Trust Statute in Missouri, 72 UMKC L. Rev. 1053 (2004).
    Helen W. Gunnarsson, Pet Trusts for Trusty Pets, 91 Ill. B.J. 113 (2003).
    Helen W. Gunnarsson, Posthumous Pet Protection Provisions, 92 Ill. B.J. 395 (2004).
    Joel Hailey, Estate Planning and Probate Concerning Animals, in State Bar of Texas Animal Law Section, 4th Annual Animal Law Institute ch. 8 (2004).
    Lin Hanson, Trusts for Companion Animals, ISBA Gen. Prac. Solo & Sm. Firm Newsletter, June 2004, at 4.
    Michael Hayes, When the Client Wants to Leave It to the Cat, J. Accountancy, July 2001.
    Jessi Hempel, Pet Projects: Providing for Fido, Bus. Week, May 17, 2004, at 12.
    Neil E. Hendershot, What the General Practitioner Needs to Know About Pennsylvania Animal Law (Part II) -- Personal and Estate Planning for Pennsylvanians Owning Pets, Penn. B. Assoc. Q., July 2006, at 107.
    Rachel Hirschfeld, Ensure Your Pet's Future: Estate Planning for Owners and Their Animal Companions, 9 Marq. Elder's Advisor 182 (2007).
    Rachel Hirschfeld, PETRIARCH(TM): The Complete Guide to Financial and Legal Planning for a Pet's Continued Care (2010).
    Peggy R. Hoyt, All My Children Wear Fur Coats – How to Leave a Legacy for Your Pet (2002).

 The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), Providing for Your Pet's Future Without You (2000).
    Rebecca J. Huss, Separation, Custody, and Estate Planning Issues Relating to Companion Animals, 74 U. Colo. L. Rev. 181 (2003).
     J. Alan Jensen, Tax and Estate Planning Involving Pets: Stupid Pet Tricks for the IRS and Fido.
    Gary L. Johnson & Gerry W. Beyer, Owner's Can Make Estate Plans for Care of Pets (2002).
    Mark Mathewson, Pet Project, 90 Ill. B.J. 632 (2002).
    Richard Mendelson, Carving Out Your Niche, A.B.A. J., May 1997, at 48, 50.
    Siobhan Morrissey, Wills Go to the Dogs, A.B.A. J., May 2003, at 24.
    Maryann Mott, And to My Dog, I Leave a $10,000 Trust Fund, May 22, 2005, at BU6.
    MSNBC, Trust Fund Cat Laps it Up in London, May 6, 2003.
    Lisa Rogak, PerPETual Care: Who Will Look after Your Pets If You're Not Around?
    Bliss Foster Scharfenberger, Estate Planning Options . . . Remembering Your Best Friends, Houston PetTalk, Jan. 2005, at 17.
    Gerhard Shipley, Pet Trusts: Providing for Pets, Kansas Elder Law Network, Dec. 1999.
    State Bar of Nevada, Providing for Your Pets.

    The Psychology of Dogs, University of Southern California.
    Al Vacek, Estate Planning for Pets (2000).
    John F. Waldron, Attorneys See More Clients Including Provisions for Pets in Their Wills, San Antonio Bus. J., Nov. 17, 2000, at 21.
    Leonard Wiener, Providing for Pets -- It's a Dog's Life After All, U.S. News & World Reports, Dec. 10, 2001, at 42.
    Richard Willing, More States Allowing Trust Funds for Pets, USA Today, Aug. 16, 2002, at 2A.


Organizations Providing Animal Care After Owner's Death:
    Alaska Humane Society Adopt-A-Cat Shelter (Anchorage, Alaska)
    American Society for the Welfare of Cats (Alloway, New Jersey)
    Amy's Farm (Chino, California)
    Angel Care Program at Home For Life Animal Sanctuary (Stillwater, Minnesota)
    Animal Helpline, Inc. (Morongo Valley, California)
    Animal Rescue and Farm Sanctuary (Trego, Wisconsin)
    Animal Welfare League of Chicago Ridge
    Assisi Animal Foundation (Crystal Lake, Illinois)
    Best Friends (nation's largest sanctuary for abused and abandoned cats, dogs, and other animals) (Kanab, Utah)
    Bosler Humane Society (Baldwinville, Massachusetts)
    California Equine Retirement Foundation, Inc. (Winchester, California)
    California Feline Foundation (Fresno, California)
    Cat Care Society (Lakewood, Colorado)
    Cedarhill Animal Sanctuary (Caledonia, Mississippi)
    Circle Tail (dogs) (Pleasant Plain, Ohio)
    Cohn Family Shelter for Small Animals (Oklahoma State University)
    Colorado Horse Rescue (Longmont, Colorado)
    Companion Care for Life Program (Humane Society of Boulder Valley Colorado)
    Dealey Life Care Cottage (McKinney, Texas)
    Dream Catcher Farm Horse Sanctuary (Rocky Mount, Virginia)
    Double D Equine Rescue (Bethel, Pennsylvania)
    East Maui Animal Refuge (Haiku, Hawaii)
    Feathered Friends Forever (Appling, Georgia)
    For the Love of Cats -- The Zimmer Foundation (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
    For the Sake of Animals (Mena, Arkansas)
    Foster Parrots, Ltd. (Rockland, Massachusetts)
    Free to Live Animal Sanctuary (Edmond, Oklahoma)
    Friend For Life at the North County Humane Society (Atascadero, California)
    Friends of Cats, Inc. (El Cajon, California)
    Gabriel Foundation (birds) (Aspen, Colorado)
    Georgia Equine Rescue League, Ltd.
    Golden Years Retirement Home sponsored by Bide-A-Wee (cats & dogs) (Westhampton, New York)
    Guardians for Life (Marin Humane Society, California)
    Habitat for Horses, Inc. (Hitchcock, Texas)
    Help Us Give Sanctuary (horses) (Fowlerville, Michigan)
    Hermitage No-Kill Cat Shelter (Tucson, Arizona)
    Hope for Animals Sanctuary (Slatersville, Rhode Island)
    Hoofed Animal Humane Society (Woodstock, Illinois)
    Hoofed Animal Humane Society of Arizona, Inc. (Chino Valley, Arizona)
    HorseNet, Inc. Horse Rescue (Eldersburg, Maryland)
    H.O.R.S.E. Rescue and Sanctuary (Wyoming County, New York)
    Horse Shelter (Cerrillos, New Mexico)
    Humane Society of Missouri Longmeadow Rescue Ranch (Union, Missouri)
    Humane Society of the Willamette Valley (Salem, Oregon)
    IGHA/HorseAid (Rancho Palos Verdes, California)
    Kent Animal Shelter (cats) (Calverton, New York)
    Last Post (cats) (Falls Village, Connecticut)
    LifeCare Program at the California Cat Center (Van Nuys, California)
    Living Free (Mountain Center, California)
    Midwest Avian Adoption & Rescue Services, Inc. (Bloomington, Minnesota)
    Mylestone Equine Rescue (Phillipsburg, New Jersey)
    National Cat Protection Society (California)
    Noah's Ark Animal Foundation (Fairfield, Iowa)
    North Shore Animal League (Surviving Pet Care Program) (cats & dogs) (nationwide)
    Ottawa Humane Society's Pet Stewardship Program (Canada)
    Oasis Sanctuary (birds) (Phoenix, Arizona)
    Peace of Mind Program at Purdue School of Veterinary Medicine (Indiana)
    Perpetual Care Program for Cats at Pet Tender's Boarding Kennel (St. Clair, Missouri)
    Perpetual Pet Care Program at Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine
    PerPETtual Care Program at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine
    Perpetual Pet Care Program at Washington State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine
    Perpetual Care Program for Cats at Pet Tender's Boarding Kennel (St. Clair, Missouri)
    Pet Estates, Inc. (cats & dogs) (Rensselaer County, New York)
    Pet Pride (cats) (Los Angeles, California)
    Pets in Need (Redwood City, California)
    Pet Survivor Care Program from British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Canada)
    Progressive Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) Lifetime Care Service (Lynnwood, Washington)
    Rescue Me, an Avian Sanctuary (Ark, Virginia)
    S.A.G.E. Rescue Farm (horses) (Dozier, Alabama)
    Second Chance Horse Rescue, Inc. (Central Valley, New York)
    Second Chance Horse Rescue Ranch (Sedro-Woolley, Washington)
    Sido Program at SF SPCA (San Francisco, California)
    Silver Streak Kennel (dogs) (upstate New York)
    South Carolina Awareness and Rescue for Equine
    SPCA of Texas (Dallas, Texas)
    Stevenson Companion Animal Life-Care Center  (Texas A&M University)
    Sunshine Home at This Old Cat (Honeoye, New York)
    Tony La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) Guardian Program (Walnut Creek, California)
    Turtle Rock Rescue (Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire)
    United States Equine Rescue League (North Carolina & surrounding states)
    Volunteers of Inter-Valley Animals (Lompoc, California)
 
    For a detailed discussion of the organizations providing animal care after the owner's death, see the excellent compilation on PetGuardian.com.


Free Brochures, Kits, Stickers, etc.:
Humane Society of the United States, Providing for Your Pet's Future Without You (2000) (kit includes article, door/window sign for emergency workers, emergency contacts sticker for inside of door, emergency pet care instruction forms for neighbors/friends/family, wallet alert cards, detailed instruction sheet for caregiver). 

 

Pet owners may order one free kit per residence by calling The HSUS at            

202-452-1100 or e-mailing petsinwills@hsus.org.

Businesses Providing Pet Identification:
    Therion International (DNA identification)