A Litigation Article used with permission from All-Creatures.org

The National Link Coalition reports on a tricky case in Delaware that sheds light on the shortcomings of established custody laws related to companion animals.

Delaware Goldendoodle Case Tests Limits of Pet Custody Disputes
From The National Link Coalition
June 2025

Images from Canva

With eight states now having laws that allow courts to award custody of a divorcing couple’s pets based on the animals’ best interests, the curious case of “Tucker” the goldendoodle showed how problematic such decisions can be – even in a state like Delaware that has such a law.

Tucker’s owners, who were not married, had been fighting over him since their breakup in 2022, Bloomberg Law reported. Three separate state courts had issued split decisions over where Tucker belonged.

The case wound up in Chancery Court before Vice Chancellor Bonnie W. David. Karen Callahan said Tucker had been her support animal during her cancer treatments and her ex, Joseph Nelson, took the dog out of state to avoid sharing him. Nelson argued that Tucker had been a gift from his daughter and that Callahan had abandoned him when they called off their engagement.

David decided to “partition” the dog, but assured everyone that this did not mean a Solomon-like decision to split Tucker in half with a sword. Under the terms of the partition, one party will own Tucker and the other will receive a monetary award. It will be up to the couple to determine the details.

David suggested a few options: Callahan and Nelson could agree to a “blind bidding auction,” where the highest bidder buys out the other’s interest. Or the court could award ownership based on Tucker’s “best interests” and grant a monetary award based on an appraisal to the other party. “Or the parties could propose a better alternative,” she said.

David’s opinion acknowledges that the law considers dogs as property even if most people do not, and that Tucker doesn’t easily fall under Delaware’s real property partition statute, which defaults to a physical “division” of property, or a public auction if the parties can’t agree.

If Callahan and Nelson had married, Delaware’s Family Court could have determined Tucker’s ownership under a 2023 law that enhanced protections for “companion animals.” Since they didn’t marry, a partition by the equity court is the option for “co-owners wishing to sever their interests in jointly owned property.”

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Posted on All-Creatures.org: June 12, 2025
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