Those of us who think of our companion animals as family members are aware of our responsibility to these dependent creatures. It is important to ensure uninterrupted care should we become incapable of caring for them ourselves.
We Specialize in Living Trust Portfolios for Stockmen, Equestrians and Pet Parents
Creating a special Trust for the Care of Livestock or Pets
One advantage of a Trust is that funds to care for your animals are available automatically since Trusts do not go through the probate period that a Will alone does.
A Living Trust providing instruction and funding for the care of animals acts as a supplement to an existing Trust Estate. If you already have a Living Trust, an Animal Care Trust can be purchased from our company by itself. If you purchase a Forevermore Trust Portfolio from Trust Production Services, the Animal Care Trust will be included pro bono (free of charge).
The Trustor (animal owner) names a Successor Trustee who will carry out the Trustor’s desired wishes for their livestock and pets, as well as an alternate Successor Trustee (in case the first chosen Successor Trustee should become incapacitated, be unable to fulfill the requests in the Trust, or dies).
The Animal Care Trust also provides information and instructions on how the Trust funds should be distributed for an animal’s care. Typically, the Trust will dictate how the funds in the Trust are to be managed, and where any remaining assets should go if the animal should also pass away (it’s also important to note that the Trust terminates upon the death of the last animal provided for). The Trust can contain information about anything from how an animal or herd should be taken care of, how to address any health issues, feed/hay preferences, exercise/enrichment schedule, and more. The Successor Trustee will care for your animals in accordance with the guidelines set within the Trust. Ideally, the individual named as Successor Trustee will either have animals of his/her own or have plenty of experience in caring for pets and livestock.
Is there a benefit of establishing a Trust as opposed to simply giving my animals and the funds needed for their care to a new owner outright?
YES - If you intend to leave the person who will take care of any animal the necessary funds to ensure proper care, a Trust offers structure and oversight because Trust assets must be separated from the Successor Trustees’ personal assets and must be used for that animal’s care as directed within the Trust document. If money were to be simply given outright to that animal’s new owner upon the death of that animal’s original owner, the funds could potentially be used by that animal’s new owner however they may choose; there is nothing that guarantees, or holds them to, using that money for the care of that animal as intended.
A Trust also allows for the succession of the animal’s guardian. For example, if you leave your animal to someone as a bequest in a Will, and that person then dies, that person’s estate determines what happens to that animal. If that animal is left in a Trust and the Successor Trustee becomes incapacitated or dies, the individual you name as a backup Successor Trustee will take over and continue care of your animal per your instructions.
Do Your Homework
In addition to providing the name and address of a Successor Trustee and alternate Successor Trustee, chosen caregivers and alternate caregivers, you will be asked to provide enough information to:
Identify your animal(s) through photos, videos, microchips, DNA samples, or alternatively, by describing your animals as a “class”—in other words, as “the horse(s) and cattle owned by you at the time of your illness/death”.
Describe in detail your animals’ standard of living and care.
Require regular inspections of your animals by the Successor Trustee, if desired.
Determine the amount of funds needed to adequately cover the expenses for your animals’ care (generally, this amount cannot exceed what may reasonably be required given your animals’ standard of living) and specify how the funds should be distributed to the caregivers.
Determine the amount of funds needed to adequately cover the expenses of administering the Animal Care Trust.
Designate a remainder Beneficiary in the event the funds in the Animal Care Trust are not exhausted.
Provide instructions for the final disposition of your animal(s) (for example, burial or cremation.)
TPS can provide information on cremation, traditional burial, truly green burial, handcrafted decorative keepsake urns, and handcrafted, biodegradable urns suitable for truly green burial –
for people, livestock and pets.
Your Belongings
We all know- livestock husbandry comes with a lot of “things!” While you plan for your animal’s future, you should also consider who will inherit your belongings. It’s also important to know how much valuable items such as saddles, harness, silver, other tack, trucks, trailers, farm maintenance equipment, etc. are worth- getting these potentially valuable items appraised will be helpful to your Beneficiaries and Successor Trustees.
Your Land
It’s become increasingly common that farm and ranch lands are bought up by developers to build houses, shopping centers, strip malls, and more. If you own land, you may want to ensure that your property doesn’t end up being bought and turned into one of those shopping centers. One way to do this is with a conservation easement.
A conservation easement is a legally binding agreement that limits certain types of use or prevents development on the land. Essentially, you can specify what you want your land to be used for in the future. Conservation easements can be tricky as they can potentially decrease your property value, make your land more difficult to sell when the time does come, and limit future land use potential. However, some perks include income and estate tax benefits, along with agricultural land conservation.
Your Farming, Ranching, Feed, Tack, Equine or Livestock Related Business
If you own ANY business, or a percentage or shares in any business, you should provide a list to TPS so that we can be sure those assets are protected under the umbrella of your Trust Estate.