We all love our pets, but what happens when you find a dog
and then keep it as your own and another owner shows up? What about a cat that was a gift from a
significant other or spouse that later becomes an ex-significant other? Who gets the pet? How does the law treat pets in those
circumstances?
Pets – all animals owned by humans, in fact – are considered
personal property or “chattel” as it is legally described. Ownership is established the same as any
personal property – by title, by ownership mark, or by a showing of
ownership. So what would be evidence of
ownership? A microchip and registration
in your name, a tattoo, a particularly specific “ear notch”, a registered
brand, or a registration that lists you as an owner and specifically identifies
the animal by any of the proceeding.
But what if both you and the “ex” are on the documentation
of registration or ownership? Unless you
have a document or witnessed agreement to give you ownership, you each own
½. What if you have paid for care and
medical costs that exceed the value of the animal? You might have an argument to receive either
½ of those costs or the other half of the animal as compensation, but to get
there, you would have to go to court….
The bottom line is, identify your animals with something
permanent and specific such as a microchip and/or a tattoo. If you own the animal with someone else, and
they give up their ownership, document it with a signed document and have the
registration of the animal changed to reflect the sole ownership.
Otherwise, you might end up in court.
Blog By: Maura Phelan, Attorney
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