Are you prepared?
It’s a story all too familiar to any rescue: a person died, and their family is desperately trying to rehome their cats. They don’t know who the vet is or if the cat is fixed; no info on where the cat was adopted from. They need the cat gone now.
We heard it all so many times, there’s a meme circulating: keep your loved one’s pets! This is what they would want you to do! And we get it, and yet it’s a huge ask of the family. A huge ask best done BEFORE death. So we are here to say: if you have pets, make arrangements for them. Even if you are not yet middle-aged, but especially if you are (or older!) Even if you think your family will step up.
Make arrangements now. If you love them, it is your responsibility to make sure they don’t end up in the shelter or in the streets. Don’t assume family will keep them — ask them now. Make sure they have a plan beyond “sure, we’ll take Fluffy.” Then, put it in your will.
If you don’t have a willing family member, ask friends. Reach out to animal lovers in your area. Ask rescues if they make pre-arrangements. If you have the means to, designate some money towards Fluffy’s care by whoever takes them. Put that in your will too.
Prepare the paperwork. Was Fluffy adopted and should be returned to the original rescue? Print out the adoption contract. If you haven’t saved the contract, write down rescue’s contact information and put it with your important papers — deed to your home, apartment lease, car title, that sort of thing. To that, add the contact info for your veterinarian, printed vet records, test results, and rabies certificate. If your pet has any medical concerns or needs medication, include it — all of this is vital. If you keep everything in electronic form (most of us do) make a folder dedicated to your pets and keep all records there as well.
When anything happens to us, it is hard enough for our loved ones to sort through everything and make so many difficult decisions. Adding a living thing to the mix makes it so much more stressful for everyone. Make it easier for your human and animal family — don’t leave it up to chance!
📸: Images on the Run