From property to family: courts, businesses and laws recognise animals’ new standing in society

A growing feeling

The surveys confirm it, year after year. According to the Pew Research Center, 97 % of pet owners in the United States consider their animals are a part of the family. A survey conducted in July 2026 on a group of 1,250 dog and cat owners suggests that 83.6 % see their pets as a member of the family and 55.8 % consider it as a son or daughter, with no difference between those who do and do not have children. A total of 76.2 % say that their pets have an impact on their daily routines, and almost half, their travel habits.

In Spain, 54 % of households include a pet, and almost four in ten owners always look for pet-friendly options when planning a holiday.

Case law is starting to build

This change in society has reached the courts. In New York, a Brooklyn judge found in 2025 that a dog was “immediate family” in a case involving the death of the animal, which was run over while walking on a leash with its owner, who was about to be knocked down. In February, Newsweek said that this was an exceptional decision: in most cases, pets continue to be ‘property’ from a legal standpoint. Even so, California, Illinois, Alaska, New Hampshire, Maine and New York already require courts to take an animal’s welfare into account in divorce proceedings.

“The law is starting to reflect a personal-animal bond and the pet-friendly culture.”

Shared custody; from Brazil to Australia

In 2026, Brazil passed a law enabling judges to grant shared custody of pets when a couple who have reared the pet together cannot reach an agreement after they separate. Whoever is living with the animal takes responsibility for their hygiene, while veterinary expenses can be shared. Since 2025, Australia has included pets in family law disputes, while British Columbia (Canada) has taken children’s bonds with their pets into account since 2024.

Spain: from the Civil to the Criminal Code

Spain was a pioneer in Europe. Law 17/2021 amended the Civil Code, the Mortgage Law and the Civil Procedure Act to recognise animals as sentient beings, rather than mere objects. In the event of a separation, the agreement must now specify who the animal will live with, how time spent with each person will be shared, and who will cover its expenses. If the parties cannot reach an agreement, or if their agreement seriously harms the animal, the judge decides in light of the animal’s welfare and the interests of the family, regardless of who is listed as its owner. Pets can no longer be seized to settle debts, and animals owned before the marriage are considered separate property.

The reform also introduced a lesser-known but far-reaching provision: a judge may not order shared custody of children where there has been abuse of an animal, or a threat to abuse one, as a means of controlling or victimising a partner or the children. For the first time, the law recognises that harming an animal can be a form of violence against people.

Proxy violence: when an animal is used as a weapon

The 2023 reform of the Criminal Code (Organic Law 3/2023) increased the penalties for animal abuse. Killing a companion animal can be punished by 12 to 24 months’ imprisonment, with a harsher penalty where the aim is to coerce, intimidate, harass or cause psychological harm to a current or former partner.

The courts have already taken that step. In 2025, Violence Against Women Court No. 2 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria handed down the first judgement to expressly apply the concept of *proxy violence* through harm to an animal: a man who killed his partner’s puppy to cause her psychological harm was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison, disqualified from certain activities, and prohibited from approaching the victim.

The debate reached the Parliament but it has been left in the balance. The Organic Bill on measures regarding proxy violence, approved by the Council of Ministers on 14 July 2026, expanded the circle of victims to include children, relatives, and people close to the woman, but it did not mention companion animals. The dissolution of the Cortes on 6 October, with general elections called for 29 November, caused the bill to lapse. It will have to be reintroduced in the next parliamentary term, along with the opportunity to recognise animals as instrumental victims.

Assistance dogs: a right throughout the country

Recognition of the human–animal bond also extends to the autonomy of people with disabilities. Royal Decree 409/2025 replaces the 1983 state regulations and brings an end to a patchwork of regional rules. People who use assistance dogs can take them into any public-use space throughout Spain, including schools, healthcare centres, shops and hotels, restaurants, museums, and theatres. Operating theatres and other areas requiring special hygiene conditions are the only exceptions. Assistance dogs may also enter beaches and swimming-pool areas, although they must not go into the water.

The regulations recognise five types of assistance dog, based on the user’s needs: guide dogs for people who are blind or visually impaired; hearing dogs for people who are deaf or deaf and blind; dogs for people with physical disabilities; autism assistance dogs; and medical alert dogs, for example those trained to respond to epileptic seizures or diabetic emergencies. It requires that their training be carried out by accredited professionals or entities and sets retirement at ten years of age, with the dog retaining its access rights. And it guarantees that women who are victims of gender-based or sexual violence may enter shelters with their assistance dog. Unlike these, so-called emotional support dogs are not trained for specific tasks and do not have equivalent legal recognition.

The Animal Welfare Law, awaiting development

Building upon this civil and criminal framework is Law 7/2023, on the protection of the rights and welfare of animals, in force since September 2023. Its full implementation still depends on four royal decrees that have undergone public consultation between 2025 and 2026, but which have yet to be approved: the general regulations for the law, universal identification for companion animals, basic standards for zoological nuclei, and the Positive List, which will determine which species may be kept as companion animals in Spain.

In the meantime, much of the ground has been gained by the autonomous communities. Catalonia was a pioneer in introducing a no-kill policy at its animal shelters, and other autonomous communities have followed suit with their own legislation. Castile-La Mancha (Law 7/2020) established a single identification register managed by the veterinary colleges and requires staff at zoological establishments to hold a certificate of competence in animal welfare. The Valencian Community passed a law in 2023 restricting breeding and sales to authorised professionals, banning travelling circuses with animals and creating a register of people disqualified from keeping them.

‘Pawternity’: pet leave

The business world is adapting too. So-called pawternity leave—time off work when a pet joins the family—is gaining ground as an employee benefit. Since 2017, Scottish brewery BrewDog has offered a week of paid leave to anyone who adopts a dog. Technology company Pipedrive grants five days in the United States, while British company Stronger Wellness introduced a paid day off for adoption in 2026, as well as bereavement leave when an animal dies.

According to a Burns Pet Nutrition survey of more than 2,000 dog owners in the UK, seven in ten support workers being able to take time off for reasons related to their pets or their loss.

A new culture, new needs

Recognising animals as part of the family has very real consequences: people are looking for homes, accommodation and transport that welcome them; businesses are reviewing their internal policies; and consumers expect products and services to meet the same standards of quality they would demand for any other family member. This is the new pet-friendly culture, and it is transforming society and the market.

Sources

1. Stanton, “Map shows where dogs are legally considered immediate family”, Newsweek, 11/02/2026 (Quote Pew Research Center, 2023).
2. PerkyPet AI and Pollfish, survey of 1,250 US pet owners (July 2026), reported by Stacker/KESQ, 6 August 2026.
3. Smith, “Countries where pets now have legal custody rights after Brazil’s 2026 law”, AOL/AlwaysPets, 18/05/2026.
4. Dominguez, “Pawternity leave becomes global workplace trend”, GlobalPETS, 27/01/2026.
5. Law 17/2021 of 15 December amending the Civil Code, the Mortgage Act and the Civil Procedure Act concerning the legal status of animals (Official State Gazette).
6. AEDPAC, 3rd Pet Parents Spain Barometer 2026 and 1st Pet-Friendly Spain Barometer 2026.
7. Organic Law 3/2023 of 28 March amending the Criminal Code with regard to animal abuse (Official State Gazette).
8. “Companion Animals and Proxy Violence”, *Animal Law Blog*, Spanish Bar Association, 28 November 2025.
9. “The Government Approves the Draft Law on Proxy Violence: Will Pets Eventually Be Included?”, *Animal’s Health*, 2026; *Que.es*, 1 October 2026.
10. Royal Decree 409/2025 on assistance dogs; press release from the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and Agenda 2030.
11. “Five Bills Lapse Following the 29 November Snap Election”, Moncloa.com, 5 October 2026; Royal Decree dissolving the Cortes Generales and calling an election (Boletín Oficial del Estado, 6 October 2026).
12. Law 7/2023 of 28 March on the protection of animal rights and welfare (Boletín Oficial del Estado); “Calls on the Government to Approve Four Regulations Pending under the Animal Welfare Law before the Election”, Diario Veterinario, 8 October 2026.
13. Law 7/2020 of 31 August on the Welfare, Protection and Defence of Animals in Castile-La Mancha (Diario Oficial de Castilla-La Mancha); Valencian animal welfare law approved by Les Corts in February 2023 (Vozpópuli, 25 February 2023).