Diane Keaton's Dog Trust Will Stop You In Your Tracks
Dogs may be man's best friend, but man has nothing on Diane Keaton. Rumor has it that upon her death, the beloved Oscar-winning star of movies like "Annie Hall", "The Godfather", "Something's Gotta Give", and "The First Wives Club" left behind an impressive $100 million estate — with $5 million earmarked for one furry companion in particular. While some celebrities die in debt, others leave behind a supersized chunk of the generational great wealth transfer. And, while the average American spends a small fortune on their pets, Keaton's golden retriever, Reggie, may have grown accustomed to far finer things in life — being the dog son of a dog mom movie star and all.
Reggie was left with this tidy sum in order to cover the rest of his dog days. Keaton leaving Reggie such a potential fortune is not only an act of love, but also a legal move that many other pet lovers should consider making. Anyone with a pet and a forward-thinking mind should consider providing for their own pet's future, even if the amount of money left for a pet is short a few million.
You don't have to be wealthy to plan for your dog's future
If Diane Keaton truly did leave her pet $5 million bones, she wouldn't be the only wealthy person to provide well for a pet. Pop star Michael Jackson reportedly willed $2 million in a pet trust for his beloved pet monkey, Bubbles, in 2009. Leona Helmsley, a billionaire hotelier known as "The Queen of Mean" who was infamous for tax evasion, left her dog Trouble a cool $12 million in 2007. When her children took this to court, Trouble's $12 million got reduced to $2 million.
Some with more average incomes may wonder just how much the hidden cost of pet ownership truly is when considering what to write in their will. People can leave money to care for their pet in a few ways. A fortune cannot be directly left to a pet, but a bequest (or gift) of money can be left for a primary caregiver, named directly in a will, along with a chain of caretakers to move to in case the previous person declines. Comedian Joan Rivers did this for her rescue dogs in her will.
A pet trust is another option, in which a trustee and caretaker must be named in legal documents. The trustee handles the money left for the pet, and distributes it in portions to the caretaker. Explicit instructions to care for the pet, as well as outlined expenses for how to do so, must be created for a trust. A pet trust also determines who inherits any remaining funds should the pet pass on.