Dogs love everyone. Cats love themselves. These are things people jokingly say about the two most common family pets. However, humans have incredible love and affection for their animals and vice versa (even if those cats seem completely disinterested). If you and your spouse divorce, pet custody will affect both of you, your children, and those fuzzy creatures that provide constant comfort and companionship.
1. Pets Are Property
Pets are family to you, but they’re considered property in a Michigan divorce. Because Michigan is an equitable distribution state, both the debts and assets of a marriage are divided for both parties, and that includes pets. This legal framework that treats your sweet pets like any other marital asset complicates the emotional side of divorce as well as all practical considerations.
2. Show Why the Pet Is Yours
There are many ways to try to prove to the court why your family pet should stay with you. You can demonstrate that you spent the most time with the pet, that it favors you, and that you provided the bulk of care. Maybe you were given the pet as a gift in the marriage or your children – whom you may have full custody of – are emotionally attached to the creature. Kids don’t deliver an automatic win, but they can help.
3. Just Remember… Effort Does Not Equal Ownership
Even if you’re the pet parent who has always carried the care load in your household, it doesn’t matter when it comes to ownership. For instance, couples tend to split the duties down the middle in their divorce when it comes to children, but when it comes to pets, if you were the one who did the dog walking or changed the litter box or made sure there was always pet food, this doesn’t automatically mean you’ll lay claim to your favorite animal.
4. Anticipate Extensive Negotiations
If your family pet was acquired by one partner before marriage, it can be identified as separate property, even if you’ve lived together and cared for and loved the pet equally. This may make the decision about who gets the animal easier because legally there will be a precedent, but fighting this ownership can make it far more difficult for the court to award custody.
5. You Might Need to Make Hard Decisions
You know your pet best. Is it chill? Anxious? Fussy? Easily perturbed? Invigorated by change? In many divorces, one party makes the decision to do what’s best for the pet, and that may mean giving up the animal to their former partner so that the creature can live happily and contentedly in the home it has always known.
6. The Tricky Nature of Pet Custody
If you have a pet you want to keep, you’ll likely have to fight for total ownership in your Michigan divorce settlement. Pet custody battles are a reality for many couples and ongoing negotiations are often necessary until an agreement is reached. Get support from Michigan Divorce Help. Contact our family law office to schedule a consultation.