KEN-MAR RESCUE GUIDELINES ON BEQUEATHING PETS

Many friends of Ken-Mar Rescue who choose to make charitable contributions by bequest to the organization also ask about the possibility of entrusting their pet(s) to the care of the organization after their death.

While Ken-Mar Rescue highly recommends identifying a trusted and willing friend or family member to care of  your pet after your death, we recognize that this alternative is not always available. Therefore, we have adopted the following guidelines to help pet owners as they prepare their wills and consider their charitable giving. We understand you can’t imagine your life without your dog, but imagine what your dog will do without you?

Introduction to Steps to Bequest Your Dog

From the time Ken-Mar Rescue was founded in 2007, our innovative pet placement program has served as a model for similar programs both locally, nationally and internationally. Ken-Mar Rescue has always had a keen interest in the dynamic connection between humans and animals. We care deeply about finding a way that pets who were unwanted or homeless could be united with loving new families. Ken-Mar Rescue has always had, and continues to have, a “no-kill” philosophy which ensures that no healthy animal is ever euthanized.

The mission, policy and procedures of Ken-Mar Rescue’s placement program reflect the belief that perpetual kenneling is not a suitable fate for an animal that has been living in a home. Pets are accepted by Ken-Mar Rescue with the understanding that every effort will be made to place the animal in a new home as quickly as possible. Ken-Mar Rescue’s model adoption program is known for its commitment to do everything possible to match a pet’s personality and physical requirements with an adoptive family’s lifestyle, needs and space.

Policy

Because Ken-Mar Rescue is continually faced with an inexhaustible supply of orphaned animals needing new homes through its adoption program and since our business model is one that is based on a foster network, owners wishing to surrender their pets may have to wait a few months before space is available. In recognition of donors who make charitable bequests or provide irrevocable trusts to Ken-Mar Rescue, Ken Mar Rescue will expedite the pet to the next available foster.

For the benefit of all pets taken into the pet placement program, it is important that charitable bequest donors who wish to leave their pets to Ken-Mar Rescue follow a few essential guidelines:

1. Ken-Mar Rescue’s adoption program is limited to small dogs. Ken-Mar Rescue’s foster network is equipped to handle only small dogs, weighing 25 lbs or less.

2. Be sure that your pet is current on all of its required vaccinations and have veterinary records kept with your other important papers.

3. Ken-Mar Rescue provides physical examinations, vaccinations and neutering/spaying for its adoptable animals, but to keep costs down for both the organization and the adoptive family, you are urged to take care of these requirements before your pet comes to us.

4. For more expedient adoptions, animals should be in stable health with no chronic medical problems, and they should be of non-aggressive good temperament.

It is Ken-Mar Rescue’s belief that dogs belong in a loving home and not in a kennel. Therefore, all animals bequeathed to us will be put up for adoption. Rest assured, Ken-Mar Rescue’s Adoptions Program goes the extra distance to match a pet’s temperament and requirements with an adoptive family’s lifestyle. Animals who are taken from their own homes sometimes suffer from stress and anxiety. Ken-Mar Rescue will make every effort to alleviate these problems through personal attention, grooming, exercise and socialization techniques.

In every instance, Ken-Mar Rescue considers what is best for the animals. For this reason, we will care for animals as long as they are physically healthy or until they are adopted. However, if the animal(s) start to significantly deteriorate and can no longer be made comfortable with an acceptable quality of life, euthanasia may have to be considered. This happens very rarely at Ken-Mar Rescue. The decision to put an animal to sleep at Ken-Mar Rescue will rest solely with Ken-Mar Rescue.

Bequest Commitment

As a non-profit organization, Ken-Mar Rescue must continually seek donations to fund its current humane and therapeutic programs. Costs to shelter, feed, groom, and provide medical care for the orphaned animals in our care are substantial. Therefore it is necessary that charitable bequest donors make the following financial provisions in order for the Ken-Mar Rescue to accept their pets:

Small Dogs under three years of age – $5,000 per animal

Small Dogs three to six years old – $10,000 per animal

Small Dogs over six years of age – $20,000 per animal

Procedures

Ken-Mar Rescue’s adoption program is not one where animals are simply placed in the first available home. Every step is taken to ensure that each adoption is a permanent match. If you wish to bequeath your dog to Ken-Mar Rescue, please take care to complete the following steps to ensure your pet’s smooth and successful transition into a new situation.

If you have questions or would like additional information on charitable giving by bequest, or on Ken-Mar Rescue’s adoption program, please email us using the form on the Contact US page

Thank you for caring so much and for looking kindly on our orphans.