It's no secret that dogs are man's best friend, and most people consider their pets to be beloved family members.
But one pet owner in China took his feelings to the extreme, choosing to leave his entire £2.2 million fortune to his pet, without leaving a dime to his children.
An elderly woman from Shanghai, surnamed Liu, claimed that her children neglected her in her old age, and removed all references to them from her will.
She claimed that her pets provided companionship when no one else was around, and that her offspring never bothered to visit her, even when she was sick.
However, a report in the South China Morning Post, citing Zhonglan News, said that because there were legal issues with leaving money to the animals, a local veterinary hospital was instead appointed as the custodian of the estate. Ta.
Liu told the media that the only things that helped him were his cats and dogs, and that after he died, he wanted the money to be used only to care for the animals and their descendants.
Despite legal issues surrounding this in China, Chen Kai, an official at the country's Will Registration Center headquarters in Beijing, explained that there are “alternatives to solve this problem”.
He said: “Ms Liu's current will is unilateral and would have advised her to appoint a trusted person to oversee the veterinary clinic to ensure the pets are properly cared for.” .
This unique story has sparked debate about family dynamics and inheritance practices in China.
But this isn't the first time a pet owner has tried to bequeath their cash to a furry friend.
New York property millionaire Leona Helmsley left her toy Maltese terrier Trouble with £6 million.
Mr Helmsley, who died in 2007, left part of his estate to the dog, but a judge later reduced this to £1.5 million.
The will was contested by two of Mrs Helmsley's grandchildren, who were excluded from the will “for known reasons”.
They argued that their grandmother was not of sound mind when she made her will two years before she died of heart failure.
The court has now reduced Mr Trouble's trust fund to £1m and ordered his grandchildren Craig Panzilar, 40, and Megan Panzilar-Wesolko, 37, to pay £2m and £1m respectively.
Similarly, Countess Carlotta Liebenstein of Germany left a fortune of £315 million to her dog Gunter IV and his descendants when she died in 1992, according to Guinness World Records.
Fashion designer Alexander McQueen also left £50,000 for each of his three English bull terriers.
