Today, I want to share a story about pets, but unlike the usual illustrated posts, this one focuses on a man whose deep longing for his dog sparked a legislative discussion on the issue of pet custody rights in the United States, ultimately changing the world. The protagonist of this story is Tim Shrum and his dog, a Shih Tzu named Tryp.
Tim fondly recalls his life with Tryp, describing it as inseparable. He took Tryp on daily walks, fed and bathed him, regularly took him to the vet for checkups, and even brought him to work when possible. No matter how busy his work was, seeing Tryp lying on his keyboard brought Tim immense comfort and healing.
However, their bond was abruptly broken due to Tim's divorce from his wife. Under U.S. law, pets are considered personal property. Although Tim loved Tryp dearly, the dog had been adopted by his wife a year before their marriage, making Tryp her personal property. Consequently, upon divorce, Tryp legally belonged to his ex-wife. After the divorce was finalized, Tim sought visitation or joint custody rights for Tryp, but his ex-wife refused all attempts at communication. Tim even took the matter to divorce court, but because pets are legally property, the court refused to intervene.
From then on, Tim never had the chance to see Tryp again. He often wondered what Tryp was doing, if the dog missed him, or if Tryp longed for his return. This painful experience made Tim realize the core issue: the law was outdated and failed to reflect the emotional bond between humans and their pets.
Historically, humans kept animals for practical reasons like hunting or food, which justified treating them as property. But as society evolved, pets became family members and emotional companions. A 2018 survey of 50,000 pet owners found that 85% of dog owners and 76% of cat owners considered their pets as part of the family.
Recognizing this shift, Tim drafted a pet rights bill advocating that judges consider the pet's welfare and award custody to the person who would best care for the animal, similar to child custody arrangements. He enlisted the help of state legislators Caleb Hemmer and Senator Jeff Yarbro to sponsor the bill. Tim personally campaigned for the bill, initially writing an article with the help of ChatGPT, praising the legislators, publishing it online, and delivering printed copies to their offices. To his surprise, both legislators agreed to become bill sponsors.
Although these legislators' social media accounts rarely featured cute pet photos, the idea that "pets are family" has become widely accepted, which helped the bill progress smoothly. In fact, similar laws have already seen success in some U.S. states. For example, Alaska passed a divorce law amendment in 2017 requiring courts to consider animal welfare—making it the first state to do so. Since then, five more states, including California, New York, New Hampshire, Illinois, and Washington D.C., have passed similar legislation with the support of animal protection organizations.
This legal evolution has slightly increased judges' workload, as they now must address pet custody issues in divorce cases. Tennessee, Tim's home state, may soon become the seventh state to adopt pet custody rights laws. Unfortunately, these laws generally do not apply retroactively, so Tim's ex-wife retains custody of Tryp. Nevertheless, Tim believes his efforts will prevent others from enduring the pain he experienced, making it all worthwhile.
