Can I make provisions for my pets in my will?

The best thing you can do is not make this too complicated. The most important thing is to find a good home for your pets. Two dogs will not be expensive (unless they were gold), so I would be less worried about money. My two cents worth…..

Yes, you can. Although, it depends on the type of provisions you want to make. For example, you can’t leave gifts to your dogs. 🙂

What you can do is nominate a guardian for your pets in the same way you might nominate a guardian for children. However, simply naming someone as a guardian in your will doesn’t mean that he or she is under any obligation to care for your dogs. They can decline the role. For that reason, it’s a good idea to speak to them in advance of making your will to ensure they are willing to take on the roll.

If your pets have special likes and dislikes, it may be useful to set these out in a memorandum which is kept with your will so your guardian will know about them.

When it comes to funding, you could make a cash gift to your guardian to help with the cost of caring for your dogs. There are some risk to that approach – especially if the named guardian declines the role of guardian. So, best to make the gift conditional upon them taking care of your dogs.

Another option would be to set up a trust now, fund it and allow the income to be applied towards the maintenance of the dogs for their lifetime. When they die, any monies left in the trust can be gifted to a loved one, friend or charity.

Hope that helps 🙂