If you live in the UK - and I would suggest most other Western countries - and you want to ensure that your cat companion is looked after on your passing, you should employ two documents namely a letter of wishes and your will.
You can't leave money to your cat in your will because cats are not considered to be sentient beings under British law. They are objects, inanimate objects, and therefore cannot receive money in your will.
But you can leave your pet cat and money to somebody you trust in your will after you've spoken to them about their "duties" when you've gone.
And when you've got their agreement you can provide guidelines about their caregiving of your cat in a letter of wishes, which accompanies the will in an envelope. Both should be drafted by a solicitor or some other qualified person to make sure that they are legal.
Note: this is a cross-post. See the other post by clicking here.
Use a will together with a letter of wishes to make provision for your cat on your passing by Michael Broad
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And it's important you don't leave too much money (whatever that actually is 😎) to the person who has been selected to look after your cat because it might be challenged by other beneficiaries. This might result in a court case and a judge possibly rewriting the will which you obviously want to avoid at all costs.
But the key point here is that there are two documents as mentioned in order to ensure that your cat is well cared for on your passing because of a weakness really in British law.
It's time for British law to change to recognise cat companions and dog companions as sentient beings because they are regarded as sentient beings and members of the family by their caregivers.
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