Five photographs of their new dog from my good friend, Dan!
(Andthe first four don’t show Raven clearly so go to the last photo.)
oooo
oooo
Dan’s wife, Hannah, holding Raven.
oooo
oooo
Here he is and what a beauty Raven is. Raven is a Black-coated Retriever. I will conclude this Picture Parade by republishing a short extract from that WikiPedia file.
“The Flat-coated Retriever is a gun dogbreed originating from England. It was developed as a retriever both on land and in the water.
The Flat-Coated Retriever breed standard calls for males to be 23–25 in (58–64 cm) tall at the withers, with a recommended weight of 60–80 lb (27–36 kg), and for females to be 22–24 in (56–61 cm), with a recommended weight of 55–75 lb (25–34 kg).
The Flat-Coated Retriever has strong muscular jaws and a relatively long muzzle. Its head is unique to the breed and is described as being “of one piece” with a minimal stop and a backskull of about the same length as the muzzle. It has almond-shaped, dark brown eyes with an intelligent, friendly expression. The ears are pendant, relatively small, and lie close to the head. The occiput (the bone at the back of the skull) is not to be accentuated (as it is in setters, for example) with the head flowing smoothly into a well-arched neck. The topline is strong and straight with a well-feathered tail of moderate length held straight off the back. This breed should be well angulated front and rear, allowing for open, effortless movement.“
Imagine a healthy forest, home to a variety of species: Birds are flitting between tree branches, salamanders are sliding through leaf litter, and wolves are tracking the scent of deer through the understory. Each of these animals has a role in the forest, and most ecologists would argue that losing any one of these species would be bad for the ecosystem as a whole.
As an ecologist, I’m curious about what these changes mean for ecosystems – can these newly arrived species functionally replace the species that used to be there? I studied this process in eastern North America, where some top predators have disappeared and a new predator has arrived.
A primer on predators
Wolves used to roam across every state east of the Mississippi River. But as the land was developed, many people viewed wolves as threats and wiped most of them out. These days, a mix of gray wolves and eastern wolves persist in Canada and around the Great Lakes, which I collectively refer to as northeastern wolves. There’s also a small population of red wolves – a distinct and smaller species of wolf – on the coast of North Carolina.
The disappearance of wolves may have given coyotes the opportunity they needed. Starting around 1900, coyotes began expanding their range east and have now colonized nearly all of eastern North America.
Coyotes colonized most of eastern North America in the wake of wolf extirpation. Jensen 2025, CC BY
So are coyotes the new wolf? Can they fill the same ecological role that wolves used to? These are the questions I set out to answer in my paper published in August 2025 in the Stacks Journal. I focused on their role as predators – what they eat and how often they kill big herbivores, such as deer and moose.
What’s on the menu?
I started by reviewing every paper I could find on wolf or coyote diets, recording what percent of scat or stomach samples contained common food items such as deer, rabbits, small rodents or fruit. I compared northeastern wolf diets to northeastern coyote diets and red wolf diets to southeastern coyote diets.
I found two striking differences between wolf and coyote diets. First, wolves ate more medium-sized herbivores. In particular, they ate more beavers in the northeast and more nutria in the southeast. Both of these species are large aquatic rodents that influence ecosystems – beaver dam building changes how water moves, sometimes undesirably for land owners, while nutria are non-native and damaging to wetlands.
Second, wolves have narrower diets overall. They eat less fruit and fewer omnivores such as birds, raccoons and foxes, compared to coyotes. This means that coyotes are likely performing some ecological roles that wolves never did, such as dispersing fruit seeds in their poop and suppressing populations of smaller predators.
Grouping food items by size and trophic level revealed some clear differences between wolf and coyote diets. Percents are the percent of samples containing each level, and stars indicate a statistically significant difference. Alex Jensen, CC BY
Killing deer and moose
But diet studies alone cannot tell the whole story – it’s usually impossible to tell whether coyotes killed or scavenged the deer they ate, for example. So I also reviewed every study I could find on ungulate mortality – these are studies that tag deer or moose, track their survival, and attribute a cause of death if they die.
These studies revealed other important differences between wolves and coyotes. For example, wolves were responsible for a substantial percentage of moose deaths – 19% of adults and 40% of calves – while none of the studies documented coyotes killing moose. This means that all, or nearly all, of moose in coyote diets is scavenged.
Coyotes are adept predators of deer, however. In the northeast, they killed more white-tailed deer fawns than wolves did, 28% compared to 15%, and a similar percentage of adult deer, 18% compared to 22%. In the southeast, coyotes killed 40% of fawns but only 6% of adults.
Rarely killing adult deer in the southeast could have implications for other members of the ecological community. For example, after killing an adult ungulate, many large predators leave some of the carcass behind, which can be an important source of food for scavengers. Although there is no data on how often red wolves kill adult deer, it is likely that coyotes are not supplying food to scavengers to the same extent that red wolves do.
So what does this all mean? It means that although coyotes eat some of the same foods, they cannot fully replace wolves. Differences between wolves and coyotes were particularly pronounced in the northeast, where coyotes rarely killed moose or beavers. Coyotes in the southeast were more similar to red wolves, but coyotes likely killed fewer nutria and adult deer.
The return of wolves could be a natural solution for regions where wildlife managers desire a reduction in moose, beaver, nutria or deer populations.
Yet even with the aid of reintroductions, wolves will likely never fully recover their former range in eastern North America – there are too many people. Coyotes, on the other hand, do quite well around people. So even if wolves never fully recover, at least coyotes will be in those places partially filling the role that wolves once had.
Indeed, humans have changed the world so much that it may be impossible to return to the way things were before people substantially changed the planet. While some restoration will certainly be possible, researchers can continue to evaluate the extent to which new species can functionally replace missing species.
So there is a big difference between the Eastern seaboard and the Western States of the USA. We live in the forested part of Southern Oregon but I have never seen a wolf despite Alex Jensen writing that they inhabit this area.
The wolf is a magnificent animal, the forerunner of the dog. I would love to see a wolf!
Last Sunday the BBC (Radio 4) broadcast a programme entitled Are You Ready. The programme was presented by Lucy Easthope: “Lucy Easthope is on a mission to find out how we can become better prepared as individuals and as a society.”
It was thirty-minutes long and contained very useful information. I wanted to share further information found online.
Be prepared for a blackout with this emergency kit! Don’t get caught in the dark – watch this video to see what essentials you need to have on hand. In this video I want to help you be prepared for when the power goes OUT. Your emergency kit can be a lifeline when the lights go out. With these preps, you can help keep you and your loved one’s safe. Don’t wait until it’s too late – start preparing now for peace of mind in 2024 and beyond. Watch till the end and I’ll share with you 3 ADDITIONAL items that are non-nucket items but can be a HUGE blessing in a power outage.
As a former Red Cross emergency volunteer in London, I have experienced that events such as blackouts, gas leaks and floods aren’t as uncommon as we would like to think. I have a camping bag as a “go bag” containing: * toilet roll * soap * toothbrush and toothpaste * a change of clothes, walking shoes and a raincoat * a blanket * a first-aid kit with added blister plasters and water filtration tablets * 2 large bottles of water * four days’ worth of non-perishable snacks (cereal bars, crackers, flapjack type things) * a battery and solar-powered radio * a battery and solar-powered torch * a map and compass * a small address book containing my loved ones’ home addresses.
There you are.
I thought we had a ‘go bag’ prepared but it must have been me thinking of it and nothing more.
Time to turn ideas into actions! Plus we have two dogs plus two caged birds that would not be left behind.
P.S. I have found the two large boxes we had purchased a while ago plus a list of the items to be taken in the event of an emergency. However these were in the garage and had been forgotten. So now they are in the home and will be prepared for use in that emergency.
On November 24th this year, The Conversation published an article that spoke of the ancient closeness, as in genetically, of wolves and dogs.
I share it with you. It is a fascinating read.
ooOOoo
Thousands of genomes reveal the wild wolf genes in most dogs’ DNA.
Modern wolves and dogs both descend from an ancient wolf population that lived alongside woolly mammoths and cave bears. Iza Lyson/500px Prime via Getty Images
Dogs were the first of any species that people domesticated, and they have been a constant part of human life for millennia. Domesticated species are the plants and animals that have evolved to live alongside humans, providing nearly all of our food and numerous other benefits. Dogs provide protection, hunting assistance, companionship, transportation and even wool for weaving blankets.
Dogs evolved from gray wolves, but scientists debate exactly where, when and how many times dogs were domesticated. Ancient DNA evidence suggests that domestication happened twice, in eastern and western Eurasia, before the groups eventually mixed. That blended population was the ancestor of all dogs living today.
Molecular clock analysis of the DNA from hundreds of modern and ancient dogs suggests they were domesticated between around 20,000 and 22,000 years ago, when large ice sheets covered much of Eurasia and North America. The first dog identified in the archaeological record is a 14,000-year-old pup found in Bonn-Oberkassel, Germany, but it can be difficult to tell based on bones whether an animal was an early domestic dog or a wild wolf.
Dogs are not exactly descended from modern wolves. Rather, dogs and wolves living today both derive from a shared ancient wolf population that lived alongside woolly mammoths and cave bears.
In most domesticated species, there are often clear, documented patterns of gene flow between the animals that live alongside humans and their wild counterparts. Where wild and domesticated animals’ habitats overlap, they can breed with each other to produce hybrid offspring. In these cases, the genes from wild animals are folded into the genetic variation of the domesticated population.
For example, pigs were domesticated in the Near East over 10,000 years ago. But when early farmers brought them to Europe, they hybridized so frequently with local wild boar that almost all of their Near Eastern DNA was replaced. Similar patterns can be seen in the endangered wild Anatolian and Cypriot mouflon that researchers have found to have high proportions of domestic sheep DNA in their genomes. It’s more common than not to find evidence of wild and domesticated animals interbreeding through time and sharing genetic material.
That wolves and dogs wouldn’t show that typical pattern is surprising, since they live in overlapping ranges and can freely interbreed.
Dog and wolf behavior are completely different, though, with wolves generally organized around a family pack structure and dogs reliant on humans. When hybridization does occur, it tends to be when human activities – such as habitat encroachment and hunting – disrupt pack dynamics, leading female wolves to strike out on their own and breed with male dogs. People intentionally bred a few “wolf dog”hybrid types in the 20th century, but these are considered the exception.
Luna Belle, a resident of the Wolf Sanctuary of Pennsylvania, which is home to both wolves and wolf dogs. Audrey Lin.
These included 146 ancient dogs and wolves covering about 100,000 years. We also looked at 1,872 modern dogs, including golden retrievers, Chihuahuas, malamutes, basenjis and other well-known breeds, plus more unusual breeds from around the world such as the Caucasian ovcharka and Swedish vallhund.
Finally, we included genomes from about 300 “village dogs.” These are not pets but are free-living animals that are dependent on their close association with human environments.
We traced the evolutionary histories of all of these canids by looking at maternal lineages via their mitochondrial genomes and paternal lineages via their Y chromosomes. We used highly sensitive computational methods to dive into the dogs’ and wolves’ nuclear genomes – that is, the genetic material contained in their cells’ nuclei.
We found the presence of wild wolf genes in most dog genomes and the presence of dog genes in about half of wild wolf genomes. The sign of the wolf was small but it was there, in the form of tiny, almost imperceptible chunks of continuous wolf DNA in dogs’ chromosomes. About two-thirds of breed dogs in our sample had wolf genes from crossbreeding that took place roughly 800 generations ago, on average.
While our results showed that larger, working dogs – such as sled dogs and large guardian dogs that protect livestock – generally have more wolf ancestry, the patterns aren’t universal. Some massive breeds such as the St. Bernard completely lack wolf DNA, but the tiny Chihuahua retains detectable wolf ancestry at 0.2% of its genome. Terriers and scent hounds typically fall at the low end of the spectrum for wolf genes.
We were surprised that every single village dog we tested had pieces of wolf DNA in their genomes. Why would this be the case? Village dogs are free-living animals that make up about half the world’s dogs. Their lives can be tough, with short life expectancy and high infant mortality. Village dogs are also associated with pathogenic diseases, including rabies and canine distemper, making them a public health concern.
More often than predicted by chance, the stretches of wolf DNA we found in village dog genomes contained genes related to olfactory receptors. We imagine that olfactory abilities influenced by wolf genes may have helped these free-living dogs survive in harsh, volatile environments.
The intertwining of dogs and wolves
Because dogs evolved from wolves, all of dogs’ DNA is originally wolf DNA. So when we’re talking about the small pieces of wolf DNA in dog genomes, we’re not referring to that original wolf gene pool that’s been kicking around over the past 20,000 years, but rather evidence for dogs and wolves continuing to interbreed much later in time.
A wolf-dog hybrid with one of each kind of parent would carry 50% dog and 50% wolf DNA. If that hybrid then lived and mated with dogs, its offspring would be 25% wolf, and so on, until we see only small snippets of wolf DNA present.
The situation is similar to one in human genomes: Neanderthals and humans share a common ancestor around half a million years ago. However, Neanderthals and our species, Homo sapiens, also overlapped and interbred in Eurasia as recently as a few thousand generations ago, shortly before Neanderthals disappeared. Scientists can spot the small pieces of Neanderthal DNA in most living humans in the same way we can see wolf genes within most dogs.
Our study updates the previously held belief that hybridization between dogs and wolves is rare; interactions between these two species do have visible genetic traces. Hybridization with free-roaming dogs is considered a threat to conservation efforts of endangered wolves, including Iberian, Italian and Himalayan wolves. However, there also is evidence that dog-wolf mixing might confer genetic advantages to wolves as they adapt to environments that are increasingly shaped by humans.
Though dogs evolved as human companions, wolves have served as their genetic lifeline. When dogs encountered evolutionary challenges such as how to survive harsh climates, scavenge for food in the streets or guard livestock, it appears they’ve been able to tap into wolf ancestry as part of their evolutionary survival kit.
Well thanks to Audrey Lin and Logan Kistler for this very interesting study. So even modern dogs have visible traces of wolf in their DNA. It is yet another example of the ability of modern science to discover facts that were unknown a few decades ago.
About Bark & Bond: At Bark & Bond, we believe that there is nothing more powerful — and simple — than the way a dog changes our routine. Whether it’s with a look full of expectation, an unexpected lick or just by being there, silent, sharing the same space.
This world of blogging opens up incredible connections!
Recently I had a ‘Like’ from someone that I hadn’t come across before. As is my response to such events, I went across to their blog site to thank them by adding a ‘Like’ to their blog site. Then I found it was about street dogs and I started reading their posts. I was blown away by the integrity of the author and he was blogging from Kabul!
I am only going to republish three of the stories today but will be coming back with more.
Panagah Amn
A humanitarian project in Kabul dedicated to building a safe shelter for stray and injured animals.
The shelter is in its early stages, and with your support, we can bring it to life.
Our goal is to provide food, medical care, and protection.
Panagah Amn is a small but passionate initiative dedicated to helping stray and injured animals in Kabul, Afghanistan. Our shelter was born from a deep sense of compassion and responsibility toward the many dogs and cats suffering in the streets without food, medical care, or shelter.
We welcome support from individuals and organizations who share our vision. Together, we can build a safer world for all living beings.
Staying with their website, I want to share these pictures with you.
He Died Waiting for Kindness
He had no name… Perhaps because no one had ever paused for even a moment to ask him: “What is your name, silent little angel?” The cold of the night had settled over the road, and the car lights passed one after another beside his blood‑stained body… No one slowed down. No one turned their head to see his pain. As if he were invisible — like a dry leaf pushed aside by the wind. But he was not invisible… He felt the pain, he felt the fear, and with every fading breath, he swallowed the loneliness. His body lay on the gravel, his eyes half‑open, as if he was still waiting… Waiting for someone who, just once, would look at him with kindness. When I arrived, the blood was still fresh… If I had reached just 20 minutes earlier, maybe… Maybe I could have saved him. Maybe I could have whispered: “You are not alone… I am here.” But it was too late. He had already chosen to leave the pain of this earth and return to the sky… To the arms of the angels — where no cars would ever drive past his heart again. No one was even willing to lift his tiny body from the road… As if he had no worth. As if a life filled with silence and waiting meant nothing. But to me, he mattered. I lifted him from the road… Not as a stray dog, but as a soul who deserved to be farewelled with dignity. I buried him… With shaking hands, yet with a heart that wanted — at least once — for someone to be kind to him. In that moment, he taught me something… Despite his wounds, despite his pain, his eyes were still full of kindness. His gaze seemed to say: “I wish everyone were like you…” But the truth is: I wish everyone were like him non‑judgmental, gentle, with a heart that remained free of hatred, even in the final breath.
If this story touched your heart… please don’t stay silent. For him, it’s already too late… But there are still hundreds of “him” breathing on our streets, and each one needs just one kind human for their life to change. Please…
Be the voice of these silent angels.
oooo
I wish everyone was like you.
It was Friday… As every week, I set out with an 8-kilogram bag of food to visit those whom the world has forgotten, yet I have never been able to forget them… From afar, the scene I saw made my heart tremble. Little puppies ran toward me with excitement and hope, so happy as if the entire world had become kind to them with just this one meal. Some were so hungry they could barely run, yet with shining eyes, they looked at me, as if saying: “You came… today we are saved.” Amid all the sounds, joy, and excitement, my eyes fell on one—a gaze silent yet screaming a thousand cries… A dog, thin, wounded, and trembling… standing in the middle of the road, afraid, yet hopeful. Fear kept him from approaching… as if he had come close to kindness many times before, only to be met with stones, kicks, and cruelty. And he had every right to be afraid… truly. As I stepped closer, I saw something no animal lover ever forgets: his ears were gone… both torn off. The scars on his head were still visible… and his leg was injured, probably struck by stones multiple times. Yet… despite all this pain, despite all the suffering… he was still calm. He didn’t bark, growl, or attack… he just looked. He had been hurt by humans… yet he still had hope in them. I gently placed the food on the ground. He took a step back… fearful, hesitant. Then, with utmost caution, he came forward, took a bite, and stepped back again, as if saying: “Forgive me… I’m not used to someone treating me kindly.” I wished I could approach, clean his wounds, and show him that not all humans are cruel. But he ran away… not from me, but from memories that resembled “me.” But that gaze… that final look that still lingers in my heart like a dagger… eyes full of tears, untold words, gratitude, and fear… as if saying: “Thank you… for a meal. Maybe today is not my last day.” As he walked away, his legs trembled… not only from hunger, but from life… from loneliness… from being forgotten. On my way back, this question kept turning in my mind like a painful melody: Until when? Until when must voiceless animals suffer from human cruelty? Until when will every meal be their only hope for survival? Until when will we just watch? In Kabul, there are hundreds of animals like him. Some die from hunger, some from stones thrown by children and adults, and some like him… with wounds never healed, yet when they see a morsel of food, gratitude shines in their eyes. I am alone… but my dream is big. I want to build a shelter: a place where no animal dies from hunger, cold, disease, or violence. A place where they can learn once more that humans can be kind. But this is impossible without your support. We need a sponsor, a foreign donor, or a compassionate organization to take the first step. Perhaps you know someone… perhaps your introduction could save a life. If you can help, collaborate, or want to get in touch with us, please contact us via the email on our website. You can be the hope for an animal’s tomorrow… with a subscription, a referral, or a small step of support. Sometimes, saving the world is impossible… but saving “a world” for one animal is possible. And perhaps today, it is our turn to change the world for one of them.
oooo
ooOOoo
Dogs are so precious. What some humans do is beyond Jean and me, and, thankfully many thousands of other people.
But that doesn’t alter the fact that stray street dogs exist.
I won’t pontificate but the message is clear.
Thank you, Dr. Mateullah Abrahemi.
Let me copy some more text about the founder:
Dr. Mateullah Abrahemi, the founder of Panagai Amn in Kabul, is a committed and compassionate advocate for stray animals, especially street dogs. With a deep belief in the right to life and welfare of these vulnerable beings, he strives to provide them with a safe shelter, food, medical care, and kindness.
His efforts are not limited to dreams and ideas; rather, he takes practical, well-planned steps to improve the living conditions of these animals. With valuable experience in animal care, Dr. Abrahemi has now launched the Panagai Amn project, aiming to expand his efforts into a comprehensive support center.
He meticulously handles financial and logistical planning, designs a multilingual website via WordPress, manages resources, produces video content, and builds international communication bridges to attract more support for the cause.
Throughout this challenging journey, when many of his requests for assistance from organizations remained unanswered or were met with rejection,
As previously mentioned, I am going to share these images on, I hope, a weekly basis.
We love our dogs and can never envisage being without one.
So what happens to them after the last one of us die?
I have just turned 81 and, although I am fit, think more seriously about this matter than I used to. Jean has no children and my son and daughter, from a previous marriage, are living in the U.K.
So an article from The Conversation caught my eye and I wanted to share it with you.
ooOOoo
Diane Keaton’s $5M pet trust would be over the top if reports prove true – here’s how to ensure your beloved pet is safe after you are gone
I’m a law professor who teaches about wills, trusts and other forms of inheritance law. Every semester, I teach my students how they can help clients provide for their pets after death. Because they, like many Americans, love their pets and want to know how to take care of them, this topic always piques their interest. https://www.youtube.com/embed/FYJGCvpJIV0?wmode=transparent&start=0 Diane Keaton was very open about her devotion to her dog, Reggie.
Writing pets into a will
An estimated 66% of all U.S. households include at least one pet. Many Americans consider their cats, dogs, tortoises or other animals to be part of their family, and their spending on those nonhuman relatives is immense. In 2024, they paid a total of about $152 billion for goods and services to feed and otherwise support their pets.
Taking good care of your pets can go beyond buying them treats and sweaters. It can include leaving clear directions to ensure their needs are met once you’re gone. There are several ways that you can do this.
The first is through your will. You can’t give your pet money directly in your will, because the law says that pets are property, like your books or your dishes.
You can, however, leave a bequest, the technical term for a gift to a person or a cause listed in a will, to someone who will be the animal’s caretaker. That bequest can include directions that the money be spent meeting the pet’s needs.
It’s worth it to also name an alternate or contingent caretaker in case the first person you name does not want to or cannot take on that responsibility, or they die before you or the animals you’ve provided for in the will.
Choupette’s life of luxury
German fashion designer, photographer and creative director Karl Lagerfeld, who died in 2019 at 85, was someone who made the mistake of leaving money directly to his fluffy Birman cat, Choupette. It worked out for Choupette, though.
The cat was, according to several reports, still alive in 2025 and eating meals out of the porcelain bowls that Lagerfeld bought for her. Choupette is cared for at great expense and in the utmost luxury by Françoise Caçote, the designer’s former housekeeper. The cat even had a 13th birthday party at Versailles.
Another pet owner who did right by her pet was the comedian, producer and red carpet interviewer Joan Rivers.
The late Joan Rivers, right, seen on the set of her short-lived talk show in 1987, planned ahead for her dogs’ care. Bettmann via Getty Images
Creating pet trusts
If you’d like an arrangement that’s more secure than a will, then you might want to opt for a pet trust, another celebrity favorite. These kinds of trusts were not possible until the 1990s, because pets were not considered true beneficiaries – meaning they couldn’t sue the trustee.
But in the 1990s, states began to change their rules to allow for pet trusts. Today, pet trusts are valid in the whole country, although the rules vary slightly from state to state.
To establish a pet trust, you or a lawyer must draw up a trust document that names two important people: a trustee and a caretaker. The trustee is the person who will manage the money you leave in trust. They will make distributions to the caretaker that you select.
You must also specify how the money is to be spent meeting the animal’s needs and who would get any money that could be left in the trust when the pet dies. Typically, these trusts take effect at the owner’s death, just like other provisions in a will.
Drafting a pet trust can be free, if you use an online template and get no legal guidance. The same thing might cost around $100 if you use an online service such as Legal Zoom that provides directions. More commonly, however, pet trusts are part of a broader estate plan, and costs range depending on how complicated your estate is.
When the rich go overboard
One of the most over-the-top pet trusts came from Leona Helmsley, the New York hotel and real estate mogul known widely as the “Queen of Mean.” She was famous for her pettiness and tough management style and for landing in prison for tax evasion.
The grandchildren, upset that Trouble got more money than they did, took the case to court, where the probate judge was less than impressed by Trouble’s luxury lifestyle and knocked down the amount in trust to $2 million. The other $10 million flowed back to her family’s foundation, where the bulk of the estate went in the first place.
Lesson learned: Your dog can have a trust fund, but don’t go overboard.
Bequests for pets can be challenged – in which case it’s up to courts to determines how much they think is reasonable for the pet’s need. In Helmsley’s case, $12 million was found to be excessive. And maybe with good reason. Trouble still had a nice life with fewer millions. The dog died in December 2010 after several years in Sarasota, Florida, at a Helmsley-owned hotel.
Other pet owners who aren’t celebrities have used pet trusts as well, such as Bill Dorris, a Nashville businessman without any human heirs. He left his dog, Lulu, $5 million.
Pet-loving celebrities who loved all the pets
Finally, there’s a lesson to be learned from British fashion designer and icon Alexander McQueen, who was worth £16 million ($21 million) when he died in 2010 at the age of 40. McQueen left £50,000 ($66,000) in a trust for his two bull terriers so that they would be well cared for during the remainder of their lives.
McQueen also included a bequest of £100,000 ($132,000) to the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in his will to help fund the care of some of the millions of other animals out there that need the basics of food and shelter.
So, my advice is that you go ahead and create a pet trust for your cat. But don’t forget to give some money in your will – and ideally while you’re alive – to help the vast majority of the millions of companion animals who need new homes every year. None of them have trust funds.
What becomes of Reggie, Keaton’s golden retriever, and her estate remains to be seen. Keaton, who starred in hit movies such as “Annie Hall,” “Reds” and “The First Wives Club,” isn’t the first celebrity to leave millions of dollars to a pet. And it’s unlikely that she will be the last.
Learning from Dogs 
