Pet Issues

Pet Custody: Who is Entitled to Keep the Family Pet?

Have you ever wondered what might have happened to Cheeta if Tarzan and Jane had decided to split up? If Fred and Wilma had gone through a nasty divorce, which one would have gotten Dino? Remember Lassie? If Timmy’s parents, Ruth and Paul Martin, had divorced would Lassie’s barking, in an attempt to explain which party she wanted to live with, have even mattered to a judge?

When people divorce, or even when roommates part ways, disputes over what happens to household pets and pet custody can get contentious. Feelings over what is to happen to the family dog, cat, or bird after a split tend to be much more passionate than they are regarding what is to happen to a lawn mower, cappuccino machine, or even to that cool washer/dryer set. That reality is why we at Holzfaster, Cecil, McKnight & Mues are seeing more and more cases involving pets and the right to keep custody of, or visit with, family pets once a split occurs.… View Full Article → “Pet Custody Disputes in Ohio”

In many divorce cases, custody or ownership of the beloved family pet is very important and the dispute can even become contentious. Sean Palmer, author of the Texas Family Law Blog, recently wrote an interesting article on the subject. It is very well written and I can’t quibble with any of it. My analysis of the subject, under a Ohio law, doesn’t appear to vary from his under Texas law. As barbaric as it sounds, pets are categorized under Ohio law as “personal property”. The court cannot treat Rover as a child, and award custody or shared parenting of him to the parties. But, I have seen Judges on rare occasions designate one party as the pet’s owner and permit the other to have access to the pet. Most domestic relations judges that I have come across are sensitive to the importance pet ownership may have and will patiently consider the facts.… View Full Article → “Who Gets Custody of Rover?”