The pet in the first week

A pet needs food, care and a place to stay in the same week. On the first day ask who looked after the animal and whether that person can continue. A partner in the same house is the most obvious carer. If there is none, look at a wish in the life file, at family, or at a boarding place that was already used. Agree who has the care for the coming days and write the name and the contact details in the file. An animal must not be left between the keys and the post without a name beside it.

Costs after the death are not automatically an asset and also not automatically a debt of the estate inventory. Food, a vet's bill or boarding costs after the date of death you note with the date and the invoice. Whether the estate inventory bears those costs depends on the decision of the authorised persons and, in case of doubt, on the notary. A bill from before the death that is still open is a debt with the vet as creditor. Do not pay privately without booking the advance. You do not put the animal itself on the list as an asset, unless there is a concrete source of value. In an ordinary household the name of the carer is enough.

If a wish stood in the life file, for example that an acquaintance gets the cat, that is a strong pointer for the care. The wish is not a will. A legacy (legaat) of an animal comes only from the will, through the notary. Until you have that text, you treat the wish as a practical direction, not as a transfer of ownership. Write down where the document lies and what the person taking the animal in has answered. A refused taking-in is also an outcome; after that you look for the next person and you note the date again.

Microchip, pet passport, vet and an insurance for the animal belong on a card in the administration. Tell the vet that the owner has died and who the contact is for treatments that are running. Ask whether an appointment is open that must be moved. You do not cancel an insurance for the animal before the new carer knows whether they want to take the policy over. The death certificate is the usual proof if the insurer asks about the owner. Note who gives the instruction to a boarding place, so that the invoice does not get lost among the other bills.

Heirs can disagree about who gets the animal. Until that question has been answered, the animal stays with the agreed carer and the status stands at temporary care. Do not move the animal as a means of pressure. You record the discussion as a dispute; the care continues in the meantime. If there are more animals, a photo and the microchip help to make clear which animal it is. An animal the deceased only looked after temporarily for someone else goes back to that owner; ask about that before you promise it to the family.

This is an administrative checklist, not legal advice. The notary, the bank or the body concerned decides what this file needs and in which order. Ervazo keeps the tasks, the letters and the recorded values. The program does not send the letters, does not pay any debts and does not file a return. For each step, note the date, the person and the document you have received. What is still missing stays an open task. A ticked line means only that the administration has been updated. The first week is complete once a name stands with the care and the vet knows who the contact is.