What Happens to Pets in a California Divorce?

For decades, California divorce courts treated family pets exactly the same way they treated a television or a blender. They were considered personal property. A judge would simply look at who bought the dog, assign it a monetary value, and award it to one spouse.

That changed completely in 2019. Recognizing that pets are family members, California passed Assembly Bill 2274, amending the Family Code to give judges entirely new powers when deciding who gets the dog, cat, or other family pet.

The "Care of the Pet" Standard

Under California Family Code Section 2605, a judge dividing a community property pet must now take into consideration the "care of the pet animal." The judge is no longer just looking at receipts. They are looking at who actually takes care of the animal:

• Who feeds the pet every day?
• Who takes the pet to the vet and pays the vet bills?
• Who walks the dog or cleans the litter box?
• Who spends the most time with the pet?
• Is there a history of domestic violence or animal abuse?

While it is not exactly the "best interest of the child" standard used for human children, it is a massive shift toward treating pets as living beings.

Is the Pet Community or Separate Property?

Before the "care" standard applies, the court still must decide whether the pet is community property or one spouse's separate property.

If you owned the dog before you got married, the dog is your separate property. The judge has no legal authority to award joint ownership or give the dog to your spouse. You keep the dog, full stop.

However, if you adopted a rescue dog together two years after your wedding, the dog is community property, and the judge will apply the new "care of the pet" standard to decide who gets it.

The Best Solution: Keep the Judge Out of It

While the law gives judges more flexibility, litigating pet custody in court is incredibly expensive and unpredictable. You are paying attorneys hundreds of dollars an hour to argue over who bought the premium dog food.

The absolute best way to handle a pet in a divorce is to negotiate it yourselves and include it in your Marital Settlement Agreement. You can be as detailed as you want:

• Who has primary custody of the pet.
• What the visitation schedule looks like.
• Who pays for routine vet bills vs. emergency surgeries.
• Who pays for food and grooming.

Think of it as a parenting plan for a child, but for your dog. If you and your spouse sign this agreement, the judge will approve it and it becomes a legally binding court order — without anyone testifying about who loves the dog more. Start your California divorce packet and we'll include a pet section in your MSA.