[3GSD4IPO]

I live alone. I travel alone.

These things mean I really should have a contingency plan if some sort of disaster happens (such as taking ill at work.. and not getting home to care for dogs etc.). Car accident is another concern.. if you get incapacitated you surely don't want Law Enforcement to take you intact working dog to the local shelter only to have them neuter the dog and adopting him out.

I know of one person who had a big long list of instructions on the console of her truck. Not sure that will even be looked at in an accident (she also has family who can come get the dogs and can handle the dogs).

Just wondering what other people have in place (if anyone does) and if other people live alone.

Last.. what plans do you have if you die (sorry.. it is morbid but a reality). Some people I know have it written that their dogs all get euthanized. THAT is unrealistic if the dog is healthy as most vets won't euthanize a healthy animal. In my case, one of my dogs would go back to his breeder. The other one.. I am not sure.. probably go to my sister.

Does anyone have planning in their will for money to take care of the dogs if they die and if so, how did you work it?

 

[Lillith]

I am married, so I imagine it would be up to my husband to decide what to do with the dog if I died. I have told him that he should first offer the dog to my parents if he feels he cannot keep him (he works 10 hours shifts 4 days a week, and although he loves the dog, I don't think he would want to or be able to care for Ralphie on his own), who really love him, and if they do not want to take on another dog, there are several people at my club who said they would gladly take him for agility. There are several elderly people, some who have health issues, and some who have even received dogs because their owners died unexpectedly, so its actually not that uncommon of a discussion. I haven't put this in a will, or anything, but I have made my wishes known to my husband, and I am confident he would make appropriate arrangements for the dog.

If I became temporarily incapacitated, I would direct my husband to board Ralphie. Again, the 10 hour work days would be hard for him to get Ralphie properly exercised if I wasn't there.

If I lived alone, I would make my wishes known in my will, or I would make sure to inform family of what I wanted done with my pets. Informing your training club what you want done with your dogs may also be a good idea, because they are probably more likely to know your dogs well than family, even. Your training club sees your dogs once, twice, or even more times a week, while your family might not see them that often, especially if they don't live nearby.

 

[CptJack]

I am married with adult children, so they have quite a bit of a safety net in those, both in case of my death or my being temporarily incapacitated. They also have the entire local dog sports community who will, and have, networked among themselves to find suitable homes for dogs. So, I'm not overly concerned.

 

[Jen2010]

I am married too so if something happened to me, my husband would look after the dogs. However, if something happened to BOTH of us we don't really have a good plan.

I do have a card in my wallet with emergency contacts for the dogs, but who knows if anyone would see it. We also have a card in our front window - one of those "in case of fire please save our pets" signs. It doesn't have instructions with what to do with them though.

For Pepper we did ask a friend to look after her in case of our deaths, but that was a few years ago and this person is really not the best candidate. I would hope my parents would take her, but I've never asked them. Kane is a different matter. He's fearful and doesn't trust anyone he doesn't know so he would be an issue. He would have to go to a rescue who deals with fearful dogs, but again, who knows what would actually happen to him if we both were gone. Someone at the daycare might be willing to take him, but how would they know we even died? They would just think we stopped coming.

I have been wanting to get a will, but haven't done it yet (my husband is resistant). Once I do I will have plans in there for looking after the dogs.

I bring Kane to work with me regularly and have often wondered what would happen if I were to get into an accident.

 

[DaySleepers]

I'm also married, and my wife's family is both dog-savvy and nearby, which gives me a decent safety net. Were I on my own for an extended period, I'd probably look up what the local policy is in these situations, perhaps even phoning animal control or the equivalent to see what the procedure typically is. I'm sure most places have something in place - I'm sure people get injured, ill, etc. and cannot care for their pets all the time (unfortunately). Maybe also carrying something like a card saying you have X# of animals at home and are their sole caretaker, including species/breed/special needs in your wallet would be more likely to be found than something in your car/truck?

If we were to separate or divorce, god forbid, we've already decided Sam's staying in Norway. Which sucks and would break my heart, but I currently can't legally stay in the country without my marriage visa, I'd hate to put him through another international move, and (for the time being) I'm nowhere near as employable as my wife and can't guarantee I could afford to keep him. All that might change in a few years, once I've finished my second bachelors and have my permanent residency, but for the time being that's what would be best for him. Not that we plan to ever break up, but. It's life. Things happen.

 

[Francl27]

I'm married so obviously my husband would be making the decisions... otherwise, I put a paper in my wallet behind my driver's license... I figure it's the first thing people would look at if I was in an accident. I wrote that I have pets at home and put my best friend's phone number on it (he has keys too).

I have a will, and I assume that the person I designed as executor will make a plan for my pets and make sure to find them a good home.

 

[RonE]

Interesting topic. I have a sister who has four dogs. She's been in the hospital for a month and they're telling her it'll be another month before she goes home. She's a widow and her only relative nearby (I'm 500 miles away) is an adult daughter who has four dogs of her own. Her daughter is also a single mom with two young children.

What my sister did was to reach out to her considerable network of friends to find temporary homes for her dogs. It took about three days to place them all. (In the meantime her daughter looked after them.)

 

[parus]

I should probably solidify this into an actual plan, but I've got couple good friends who have dogyards, and plenty of friends and family who like my dogs, so I can't imagine be hurting for either temporary or permanent housing.

My work is such that I couldn't be missing for more than a few days without someone checking things out even if I was the only person home.

 

[NorCalFMD]

I'm as single as the day is long, but I don't live alone. Unless she was out of town, my roommate would definitely notice that my dog was hungry or had to poop, if I didn't come home.

My mom would steal Klara in a heartbeat if needed/allowed. I also have a few friends who would step up to the plate willingly, I think. i don't have anything in writing, but my mom & I have talked about it.

 

[3GSD4IPO]

With the exception of RonE's Sister, everyone here has someone in the house (it seems). I do not. I could (I suppose) rent out the spare room but then someone else would be in the house.. and I LIKE not having anyone living there. I did have my Mom living with me but she passed away (she was 91 and had a great life).

For instance: I am going away for a weekend (dog event) and I am boarding one dog and taking the other one with me. My brother will take care of the cats (he is not much on dogs). Later in the fall I am having some surgery and will be out of commission for a bit.. and am planning on a combination of boarding and paying a neighbor to help once I get home. I am in a rural setting.

I think that if something happened to me no one would notice my absence (or by the time they did it would be far too late). At work it would suddenly dawn on them that nothing was getting done and they might check! Ha!

I will have to figure this out. It seems it is more unique than I thought.

 

[Zub23]

I am married but if something happens to me my husband probably wouldn't be able to handle our older dog Rosie. She's an ACD maybe border collie mix and very stubborn and anxious. Definitely a one person dog and I'm that person. She won't even let him take her outside. So having someone else in the house is no guarantee. If necessary I'm pretty sure her foster mom (the lady who was taking care of her when we met) would take her back. I really do need to make a plan. Thanks for bringing up the topic. Gracie, our 9 month old pup, on the other hand, would go with anybody who has treats.

 

[parus]

I will have to figure this out. It seems it is more unique than I thought.

I believe there are commercial services that will make a daily call to confirm that you're all right. It's aimed at elderly people but it seems like it could be something that'd alleviate your concern.

 

[Wet Beards]

I have a friend who is in somewhat the same position as you except
that she is no doubt much older.
What she did is:
Took a picture of each of her three dogs.
Tacked them up in her porch on a bulletin board. Can't miss seeing it when you come in.
Under each, the name, age and a list of feeding instructions and quirks.
(one will only eat if you hold the bowl etc.)
She has let a few select friends (I'm one) know the code to get into her house.
Before she goes anywhere, she sends a quick text to this same network of friends
and a text again when she is back home.
Because she is quite elderly and not in the greatest health, I have her send me a
text every morning, "Hi" just so I know she is okay.
She has left explicit instructions as to what to do with her dogs should she not
get up to greet another day.