Couples urged to sign pre-nups on their pets to avoid custody battles if they divorce

COUPLES are being urged to sign pre-nup-style agreements on their pets — to avoid custody battles if they later split.

Around 30,000 divorces a year in the UK involve animals.

But the total is set to soar as 3.2million households have acquired pets for company since the first Covid lockdown in March 2020.

High-profile cases have included TV’s Ant McPartlin and ex-wife Lisa Armstrong fighting for custody of chocolate labrador Hurley.

Now some family lawyers are offering “pet-nup” agreements to couples, including Blythe Liggins in Leamington Spa, Warks.

Chartered legal executive Louise Sheasby said: “A pet is basically treated like a personal possession — to be divided up with the car and the flat screen TV.”

She said disagreements about who a pet should live with “can be distressing”.

Louise added: “Couples are being encouraged to think about what would happen to their much-loved cat or dog if they were to separate.

“A pet-nup agreement can set out things like where your pet lives and how often they can see the other party."