1. Your pet is part of a working farm operation (registered business) and the animal has a productive role in the generation of income from farming.

You could also argue that your pet, who earns you a taxable income from social media brand sponsorships and exposure (Insta-famous), has associated business costs that are necessary to continue to generate income.

The CRA will likely require you to demonstrate that the intent of your business activities claims is to earn a profit (through a review request in the six years after you filed), so it’s a good idea to keep track of your business activities including financial transactions, clients closed & prospected, marketing activities, and time allocated.

Use professional invoices to document all your payments received, and keep on file paper or soft copies of all the receipts of expenses that you will claim for the business overall, not just associated with your pets. Here is a spreadsheet (template) you can use to topline each year of your business activities revenue & expense claims, for your tax preparer or to prepare yourself for filing: