Divorced couple's dog to be treated as child in Colombian court ruling

A Colombia court has ruled that the pet dog of a couple should be treated as a child in divorce proceedings. It all began after a family dog, Simona, was “emotionally affected” for a year by the divorce of her owners, Jader Castano and Lina Ochoa, in 2021, reported Daily Mail Online.

After the couple parted ways, Simona used to live with Ochoa, who reportedly had full custody of the canine.

The report claimed that Ochoa refused to let Castano, a Colombian University rector, have pre-set guaranteed visits to see and play with Simona.

When Castano noticed that Simona used to wait to play with him for weeks, the rector was convinced that she was emotionally affected every time he left her and went.

In addition, the report added the Bogota Superior Court document claimed that Castano himself was depressed after he lost his furry friend in the divorce. Due to the grief of separation from his dog, Castano couldn’t even eat a complete meal.

After months of heartbreak, Castano decided to take the matter to court, with the hope that he could be allowed to see Simona in pre-set and guaranteed visits.

As per the report, last month, the judges at the Bogota Superior Court ruled that the pet dog should be legally considered as Castano’s “daughter”. The judges added that Simona should be treated as a child in the divorce proceedings.

Castano even sued his ex-wife Ochoa for refusing to let him have scheduled visits with Simona. While doing so Castano reasoned that the canine was part of the “family's nucleus” and they have a “bond of love”.

When asked if Simona should be treated as a family member, the judges said yes and claimed that the pet dog had been a member of the “multispecies” family before the divorce.

The court ruled that Castano is entitled to regular and scheduled visits with his beloved dog Simone.

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