Most American marriages have at least one pet and almost half of them end in divorce. Family attorney Jim Mueller with Verner, Brumley, Mueller & Parker says some couples have tremendous attachments to their dogs and cats and make it legal. “We do more pre-nups and post-nups (agreements crafted after the couple is already marries) that will deal with the pet(s).“ If the couple can't agree on who has sole possession of the pet, arrangements have to be made. “Some of the most important 'people' in the couple’s lives are their pets…and that has led to a lot of customized pet possession schedules." Sounds similar to child visitation schedules, doesn't it?
If the pet is adopted before the marriage, the pet's "custody" goes to the original adopter. If the pet is adopted during the marriage and there's no pre-divorce agreement, however, some couples may take the matter to court. "It’s just like children after any divorce.We are going to figure out who pays for what vet bills, what medicine bills and who is going to have what pet at what times.”