Divorce and Pets: How Do You Share Your Furry Companion With Your Former Spouse? | Allan Brandon Tise PLLC, Attorney at Law

Divorce is difficult for everyone involved, including beloved pets. There are very specific custody proceedings that are in place to handle dividing the time spent with your children. For many people, pets are just as much a part of the family as our children. Sadly, they are treated as personal property in a divorce and are awarded to a party.



When you are getting a divorce and you agree to share your pets, there are some ways to go about it that are equal and fair. The following are some things to keep in mind when sharing custody of your pets after a divorce.

Check the Paperwork for Your Dog

Some divorcing couples will have conflicts over the actual ownership of the pet. One way to resolve this issue, particularly for dogs, is to check the names listed on the registration paperwork. If your dog is registered with a national registry for dogs, such as the American Kennel Club, the name of the owner will be listed on the paperwork.

Having your name on any paperwork related to the dog will serve as strong evidence in your case for ownership. In addition to registration paperwork, you should also check with all paperwork that your veterinarian has on file. You should be listed on the contact information sheet as an owner.

Additionally, your name should be on paperwork related to microchipping, vaccination records, and anything else related to the health and well-being of the dog. The purchase records for the dog can be a very strong piece of evidence, particularly if you purchased your dog before the marriage. All of this paperwork will provide very strong proof that you are the legal owner of the dog. If the money used to purchase the pet was earned prior to marriage, then the pet is the purchaser’s separate property.

Consider a True Custody Arrangement

Although you cannot put your pets into a legal custody arrangement like you would children, you can come up with an arrangement in court that you can both agree to. Most courts will be willing to entertain a reasonable shared and enforceable arrangement when it comes to pets.

One way you can do this is to share the same custody schedule that you have for your children. Sending the pets and children to the same home at the same time will not only simplify the process, but it will also allow the kids to be with their pets all the time rather than only while they’re at one parent's home.

When you do a shared arrangement for your pets, there are some key factors that you both need to think about. Pet maintenance and its associated cost are very important to discuss. You will need to decide who will pay for grooming, medical costs, medication, and the like.

In addition, you may want to come to an agreement on what should happen when the pet reaches an elderly age or becomes very ill. Can you both get on the same page when it comes to these types of important decisions? All of these things are very important to talk about upfront so that there are no surprises later on.

Consider Compassion

Divorce is no doubt a difficult time, and it can be very difficult to want to show compassion to your soon-to-be former spouse, especially if the circumstances were tumultuous. However, it is important to retain some compassion when it comes to sharing time with pets.

You both likely have very strong relationships with your pets, as they do with you. Many pets form very strong bonds with all of their owners, and it can be sad for them to be ripped away from one of them. You both need to be compassionate toward the pet, if not each other, and come up with a solution to make everyone happy in this situation.

If you have any questions or concerns about a divorce or other family law issues, please contact  Allan Brandon Tise, PLLC Attorney at Law.