David the Dog

All week I waited, worried. Where was David the dog? Finally, Friday, there he was trotting along with David the human.

I hope David the dog doesn’t just disappear with no explanation. He came with an explanation – and a big packet of cash. And aside from avoiding unexplained loose ends, David’s arrival brings up issues that should not be ignored.

A client of David’s, Mrs. Moss, died and left her dog – named David as well – to him in her will. She also left David £20,000. He was much happier about the cash than the dog. The two are inextricably connected. But I’m not sure David the human realizes that.

Mrs. Moss’s intention, I’m sure, was that the money would provide for the dog’s care and also be of help to his new carer. So a thank you and a way to ensure that David the dog is not a financial burden. But if she spelled that out in her will, it went right over David’s head. None of the Platts seem to have added two and two and realized that looking after David the dog is a trust agreed to by accepting the terms of the will – and the money.

Pets in wills

Last week, after the dog escaped, Gail asked if it would be such a bad thing if he got lost! It reminded me of what my lawyer had said to me about including provisions for a pet, and care-taking money, in a will. Make sure there’s a system for accounting, otherwise it’s ‘whoops, cat’s dead, thanks for the cash!’ he said. Mrs. Moss should have talked to him, I think.

I don’t think that Coronation Street writers included the legacy of David the dog as an “issue story,” but it is. Pets are abandoned, taken to shelters or killed after their owners die (see my Pet Heirs). It happens even when people think they have made provision for their pets. That is what Mrs. Moss did, and I hope the Platts will not continue to be so cavalier in their attitude toward David the dog and his £20,000.

I think she cannot have known David or any of his family very well. Otherwise she would not have entrusted her beloved dog to him. But she did, and she rewarded him well for it. David has given the money away, but I hope he shows that he is aware of his continuing obligation to David the dog and to Mrs. Moss.