Brazil approves law giving separated couples joint custody of pets

Brazil has approved new laws, introducing joint custody rights for the pets of separating couples.

According to lawmakers in the Brazilian Congress, the recent changes shed light on the importance of pets in people’s lives who treat them like a family member.

Under the newly-approved legislation, in the case of separation between a couple without reaching an arrangement on the custody of their pet, they would seek this arrangement through court.

“A judge will determine the shared custody arrangement and the equitable distribution of the animal’s maintenance expenses between the parties,” the legislation says.

But for the law to be applicable on couples, they must spend the majority of their lives with the pet. And if the couple is found to have a history of domestic violence and criminal activities, the shared custody will never be granted to them.

According to the Instituto Pet Brasil, currently 213 million people in the country have about 160 million pets.

Congressional members also highlighted a surge in judicial disputes over pet ownership, asserting that the law adapts to "changes that have occurred in Brazilian society in recent decades."

The accompanying report suggests that with the decline in birth rates, animals are increasingly integrated into the domestic sphere, “often considered true family members.”

Prior to these landmark changes in Brazil, Spain also set the example by granting joint custody of a dog pet to a separated couple.

In 2014, France also made changes in law, so pets “were considered living and feeling beings rather than moveable goods.”