Recording who will care for a pet
The short answer
You can record each pet, its vet, its daily routine, and the person who has agreed to care for it. This records an agreement between people. It is not a legal arrangement.
What Part 7 of the record holds
- The pet's name and the kind of animal.
- The vet, and the vet's phone.
- The daily routine, in your own words.
- Who has agreed to care for this pet.
- Notes.
- Name
- Biscuit
- Vet
- Example Street Veterinary Clinic
- Daily routine
- Walk at eight and at five. Dry food twice a day. Sleeps in the kitchen.
- Who has agreed to care for this pet
- Maria Example
The National Institute on Aging suggests that a person with a pet include the name and address of the veterinarian among their important papers.
The person who has agreed
The question asks who has agreed. It is for a person who has said yes.
If nobody has agreed yet, the question can be left empty or marked "I do not know yet". Nothing is shown as missing.
If you wish, you can tell that person where the record is kept, so that they can find the routine and the vet's phone.
The daily routine
The routine is written in your own words, as you would tell a neighbor: for example meals, walks, and where the pet sleeps.
The first steps checklist, for the person who must act after a death, points to this part of the record.
What this part is not
A name written here records what two people have agreed. It does not create a legal arrangement of any kind.
This part is not the place to leave money for a pet.
The National Institute on Aging notes that a will can address care for pets.
If you would like a legal arrangement for a pet, or would like to provide money for its care, see your own attorney.
Rules differ by state and country. For a will, a power of attorney or an advance directive, see your own attorney and your state's official sources.
If plans change
If the person who agreed can no longer do it, or a pet's routine changes, you can change the entry at any time.
"Review my record" walks through this part along with the others, with two choices for each: "Still right" and "Change it".
Sources
A sentence on this page that states a fact about the world rests on one of the official pages below. A sentence that only describes this record rests on no outside page.
Getting Your Affairs in Order Checklist: Documents to Prepare for the Future
- Published by
- National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health
- Address
- https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/advance-care-planning/getting-your-affairs-order-checklist-documents-prepare-future
- The page's own date
- Content reviewed 1 February 2023
- Read on
If something on this page looks wrong, or an official page has changed since the date shown, please say so. The contact page explains how.