There are many reasons that people in Nevada seek to create an estate plan. For many, the desire to ensure that their families are cared for after their deaths impels them to begin the estate planning process. Some wish to appoint guardians for minor children. Increasingly, however, some people are now seeking to make arrangements for family pets.
Traditionally, many in Nevada may have considered estate planning for a pet to be a luxury only for the rich. However, now many middle-income people are seeking to ensure that their pets are cared for after their death. This can be accomplished using different estate planning tools.
One of the best ways to ensure that a pet is well cared for is to create a trust for their care. This type of estate planning tool can be customized to instruct a trustee to act in specific ways such as the timing of feedings, number of walks and amount of medical care for an animal. It is also the most protective of all possible options, allowing the pet owner to ensure that their wishes are carried out precisely.
Estate planning can be used to achieve the goals of many in our state. By making specific bequests or directives, a person can ensure that their wishes are adhered to after their death. In order to achieve such ends, individuals may wish to conduct a review of all available options of estate planning in order to feel that they have made the best possible plans for the heirs of an estate, be they human or pet.
Source: MarketWatch, “Estate planning to care for your pets,” Catey Hill, Dec. 25, 2012