Dogs Are Legally Part of Your Family in Maine and New Hampshire

Fido doesn’t just feel like he’s part of your family, he legally is in six states including Maine and NH.

We all know that our pets feel like they are part of the family, but they legally are in six states:  New York, Alaska, California, Illinois, Maine, and New Hampshire.

What does that mean that dogs are legally part of your family in Maine and NH?

According to the Daily Mail, research has shown that most of us already consider our pets as much a part of the family as the human members. Having pets as legal family members means that pets can be in ugly custody cases. They are treated like children and a judge can, in some cases, decide who gets custody.

READ MORE: 10 Maine Dogs That Look Like Their Maine Owners

Daily Mail refers to Psychology Today that the custody of kids is decided in large part by which environment is best for them. That applies to a dog in a custody battle. Who can take better care of the animal and what relationship does the dog have with the family? You know how a pet can be attached to one member more than others. Then there’s the health of both owners, work schedules, and pet supplies.

Hurricane Katrina changed the law regarding pets because we treat them like family members.

The government passed the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2006 after finding that people would not evacuate during Hurricane Katrina because they wouldn’t leave their pets. That told the government, that yes, these aren’t just objects, they are family members. This law applies to every state in the US during a natural disaster, including the recent Hurricane Helene.

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