Woman loses legal battle to get dogs back from her ex-husband after divorce and ends up owing him S$3,500

SINGAPORE: A wife files a lawsuit against her ex-husband to reclaim their two dogs after their divorce, and demands that he face imprisonment or pay the fines if he does not comply. 

According to the court, the couple married in February 2020 and were divorced four years later. In May 2024, they reached an agreement on matters such as the division of their marital home and their other properties.

However, in 2025, the woman claimed that the man failed to comply with a court order to return the dogs to her. With this, she requested the judge to rule that her ex-husband is in contempt and order him to return the dogs, or he will face imprisonment or a fine. Additionally, the woman also demanded that the man cover all the legal expenses. 

Who really owns the dogs?

Because the divorce agreement says that each party should keep their own assets, the woman must prove that the two dogs really belong to her. 

One of the dogs, which is referred to as X, was a male dog that was bought by the woman’s other ex-husband around 2016. As for the other dog, which is referred to as Y, the man in this case stated that he adopted it after seeing an adoption advertisement on Facebook. He claimed that the woman was not involved in the adoption process. The woman argued that both dogs were registered under his name, and that she should retain ownership and possession of them. 

However, the ex-husband in the case stated that dogs were not marital property and that they should not be considered as commodities. In the end, the judge ruled that the real concern in this case was determining who the legal owner was, and if the woman claimed that she was, she must provide enough evidence. 

The woman was unable to provide such evidence.

Witnesses also testified that dog Y was given to the man, and confirmed that the man brought Y to his residence. 

The judge decided that the two dogs were joining property of the divorcing couple, but since the woman failed to provide evidence that she owned the dogs, her application was rejected. 

With this, she was also required to pay the man S$3,500 in court costs. 

In Singapore, there is no legal idea of custody for pets, unlike there is for children. One should really provide evidence that shows that they are the primary owner and caretaker of the pet. If the couple cannot agree on who will take care of the pets, they may opt for mediation, wherein a neutral person helps both of them reach an agreement.