Former couple has a dog custody dispute

Attorney Tom Olsen: We get regular emails from people with questions and we always try and assist them as best we can, and you were telling me about a situation where a man and a woman are having a custody dispute over their pet dog. Tell us about that.

Attorney Robert Hidock: It's a non-married couple, they haven't been married, and the male, he bought the dog while they were together 14 years ago. They were together as a couple for seven years. They split and then for the last seven years they have been doing one month on, one month off, exchanging male to female, female to male and back. That's how it was, but the male has been paying-- Well, he bought the dog, he did the licensing of it, he's paid over $9,000 in vet bills, and all of a sudden after Christmas, his ex-girlfriend gets the dog back and he never heard from her again. She won't answer his call, she won't answer emails, she's blocked him, blocked all of his friends from getting in touch with him. He loves this dog and he's petrified that he's never going to see this dog again.

Tom: For seven years, they've been alternating months, and after Christmas she gets the dog, but she's completely out of contact with him now?

Robert: Yes.

Tom: Just from a legal perspective, well the fact that he bought the dog, the dog license is his name, he's been paying the medical bills, you would think that would count for a lot if push came to shove.

Robert: You would think, and then you would think custom and usage because they've built a "pseudo-parenting plan", because, unfortunately, in Florida dogs aren't just considered property, it's not the same standard as a person. We, actually, I know it's just not our law firm, but we know a lot of other attorneys that do something that we don't do.

Tom: I want to say that over the years, people often will have some issue, concern, dispute with somebody, whether it's a friend, neighbor, family member, and they'll go, "Well, can I call the police?" We go, "Yes, you can call the police, but they're not going to help you. They're going to tell you that this is a civil matter." If this gentleman called you and says, "I'm going to call the police," you can say, "Fine, but the police are probably not going to help you." You found a lawyer here in the state of Florida that has expertise and deals with, well, animal custody dispute problems.

Robert: Pet disputes.

Tom: Pet disputes.

Robert: Yes, it's an attorney out of St. Pete, I'll give her a shout out, her name is April Goodwin, and she really specializes in pets. I guess most people don't have a pet parenting plan, so to speak, but it is for the people that love their pets and they don't get to see their pets, she's a good solution that can maybe help you get your pet back. He was going over the invoice, not the invoice form, but the initial form that was sent out to him, like a questionnaire, and it's pretty detailed, like what remedy do you want? Do you want the dog back? Do you want to be reimbursed for medical expenses? It goes on and on and on, and from there she'll run with what she thinks the best solution will be.

Tom: We have the LexisNexis research system in our office. It'd be interesting to explore that issue and see what case law there is out there on pet custody cases.

Robert: It would.

Tom: I find that really quite fascinating, it's interesting that somebody is that specialized in a particular area of law. One thing we should say about pets, dogs, cats, you name it, is that under Florida law, they are designated as personal property, they're no different than a couch as far as their legal status is concerned.

Robert: That's sad.

Tom: Yes. Folks, if you've got a legal question, we'd love to hear from you right now.