Pet lovers in Massachusetts are optimistic the governor will sign into law this week that will allow them to designate in a will who should care for a pet after the owner’s death.
“It’s become clear this is something that’s important to people,” said Kara Holmquist, director of advocacy for the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The bill, introduced in January 2009, makes a pet owner’s decision, about who will care for their pet, an enforceable mandate. Currently, if money is left to a specified caretaker and they do not use it for the pet, there is no legal recourse.
Leaving money and instructions behind for pet care is not just a sentimental gesture by animal lovers who consider pets family, said Holmquist.
It also relieves the financial burden on towns that are often left to foot the bill for food and shelter when pets are abandoned. Donna Turley, a Boston-based attorney who helped draft the legislation, said the Massachusetts bill also allows people who are no longer able to care for pets but still living to set up trusts. The bill also permits court intervention if the amount of money left for pet care is excessive, said Turley.
