Pet Trust Planning for Mill Valley Animal Owners

Start with the authority question

Before choosing a caregiver or setting out instructions, clarify who owns the animal now and who can make day-to-day care decisions. That ownership and authority question can change the next planning step: a proposed caregiver may need to coordinate with another owner, or you may need to identify who can act if the person you first had in mind is unavailable.

California law provides for trusts for the care of a living animal. The arrangement should identify its animal-care purpose and the people and resources involved. A pet-care plan is not a statement that the animal inherits directly as a person would; focus instead on how the trust arrangement is meant to support care.

• Write down the animal’s current owner or owners and the people who presently make care decisions.
• Identify a proposed caregiver and consider whom you would ask about an alternative if that person cannot take the role.
• Separate the question of who will provide care from the question of who will oversee the trust’s purpose.

Choose people for distinct roles

A California animal-trust arrangement distinguishes a trustee from a person designated or appointed to enforce the trust purpose. Treat those as separate planning choices rather than assuming that the caregiver, trustee and person overseeing the purpose must all be the same individual.

Consider the practical fit of each proposed person. A caregiver needs to be willing and able to take on the animal’s daily care. For the other roles, consider whether the person is dependable, understands your aims and can communicate with the caregiver. These are planning considerations, not a guarantee that a particular arrangement will be enforced as intended.

Discuss what should happen if a named person declines, becomes unavailable or disagrees with another person involved. Naming an alternate or describing how you want a disagreement handled can make your intentions clearer to the people you have selected.

Make resources and instructions practical

Think about what the caregiver would need to know to provide the kind of care you intend. Prepare a written description of the animal’s usual routine, food and care preferences, relevant contacts, and any instructions that matter to you. Keep the information current and tell the proposed caregiver where it can be found.

Consider what resources you want associated with the care plan and how the people involved should understand their purpose. The California framework calls for the arrangement to identify the animal-care purpose and the people and resources involved. It does not set out a veterinary care plan for your animal; consult an appropriate veterinary professional about medical questions.

For example, if one person is willing to provide daily care but another is better placed to oversee the trust purpose, the plan can make those roles distinct. The example illustrates a planning choice, not a required arrangement or a prediction about how a dispute would be resolved.

• Gather the animal’s current routine and care preferences.
• List the people you are considering and the role you would discuss with each.
• Note the resources you want considered for care and any questions about how they should be coordinated.

Consider oversight and the limits of the plan

Oversight matters because the person providing daily care may not be the person designated or appointed to enforce the trust purpose. Decide whom you would trust to pay attention to whether the arrangement is being carried out as intended, and consider how that person could communicate with the caregiver.

A written plan cannot ensure that a proposed caregiver will remain available or that every future circumstance will match your instructions. The practical value is in giving the people involved a clearer account of your purpose, the roles you have in mind and the resources intended for the animal’s care. Revisit those choices if ownership, the animal’s needs or a proposed person’s availability changes.

Codi M. Dada Law Office P.C. serves Mill Valley clients virtually from its Novato office. A useful next step is to bring your ownership and authority questions, proposed role assignments, care instructions and resource questions to a planning discussion.