Your pet is a big part of your life, your family’s life and your overall happiness. During a divorce, you may find yourself wondering if you need to create a pet custody plan the same way that you would create a child custody plan.
You and your ex absolutely have the option to do this if you would like. Perhaps you also have children, for example, and they’re going to move back and forth between your homes every other week. A simple solution may be to include the pet in this plan so that the kids get to live with their pet all of the time, and both parents get to see it every other week.
What if you can’t agree?
That said, you and your ex may not be able to find a solution that you both agree on. This often happens with child custody cases, and it can definitely happen with your pet. So can you go to the court and have them rule on how you should split custody of your pet?
If you do find yourself in this situation, the most important thing to know is that the court sees your pet as property. This is a key distinction because it means the court is likely not going to set up a custody situation. They can do it for children, but they’re generally not going to order that the two of you should share any sort of property, whether it’s a dining room set or an art collection – or your pet. The court sees all these the same way.
Situations like this can get very complicated, and there are a lot of emotions involved. Make sure you know exactly what legal steps to take.