World’s Richest Cat?

Looks like a purr-ty nice day out there. Hope it's like this where you are. Nice to see you. Fill your mug and snag a VT, okay? Hey...are you a cat lover or a cat hater? Seems there's no middle ground. Well, liking cats is one thing, but is this a bit much or what?

Leaving multimillion dollar estates to pets is becoming increasingly common around the world. Last year, a 94-year old Italian heiress passed away and left her entire $13 million fortune to her cat, Tommaso. The heiress, Maria Assunta, was widowed and childless when she adopted Tommaso, a flea-ridden stray cat roaming the streets of Rome.

In gratitude, Tommaso became her loving and devoted companion. Thus, when Ms. Assunta died, she apparently felt Tommaso deserved her entire estate. Italian law, however, forbids passing on one’s wealth directly to an animal, so Ms. Assunta named her nurse, friend and fellow cat lover, the trusted overseer of Tommaso’s care and estate.

Now the nurse and Tommaso live with another cat in the Roman countryside, in an undisclosed location, in order to avoid fortune hunters and con-men.

I have mixed feelings about this growing trend to leave huge amounts of money to one or two pets. If someone wants to leave a trust to ensure their pet’s welfare after their own death, that is not only entirely understandable, it is also responsible. But to leave millions to one animal when there are so many needy people, animals and causes out there that would seriously benefit from an influx of cash. 

What do you think? Do you plan to leave a trust for your pet? Do you think it should be legal to leave vast sums of money to one animal?

See ya, eh?

Bob