Fifteen Per Cent Of Brits Love Their Pet More Than Their Partner

You may or may not know that today is Love Your Pet Day - a title that could be applied to every day of the year for most pet owners.

In Britain, we are particularly fond of our pet pals, and a recent survey suggests that for many of us, they are the number one priority.

From a sample of 1,254 people across the UK, 15 per cent of respondents said they loved their pet more than their partner. A third of people put their pet and their partner on par, while only a further third of people were willing to say they loved their partner more than their pet.

The research was carried out by Maguire Family Law in light of ever increasing numbers of divorces involving arguments over who gets to keep the pet.

But the real question is, are we surprised by the findings?

PA

After all, the dog doesn't mind you watching the Champions League on Tuesday and Wednesday evening. The dog doesn't slag you off for leaving your wet towel on the bed, before doing the exact same thing a day later. The dog doesn't lock the door when they leave the flat - even though you expressly told them not to cos you were going on a run and you didn't have a key on you - leaving you locked out, cold and sweaty for three hours.

... They're good like that, dogs.

That said, the poll referred to all pets, not specifically dogs, which are obviously the best. There's no shame in losing to a dog, but if your partner is one of the 15 per cent that said they loved their pet more than their partner, and their pet is a goldfish, then yeah, you're probably in trouble.

James Maguire, managing director of Maguire Family Law, advised couples to draw up a 'pet-nup', just in case shit hits the fan.

Maguire said: "We're seeing a growing number of divorce and separation cases where people are arguing over care arrangements of their dogs, cats, horses and other pets.

"Although our survey showed a third of pet owners in relationships think animals should be treated the same as children when it comes to breakups, unfortunately the law doesn't agree.

"Obviously, the emotional attachment to pets can be huge, which is why we see so much upset over who gets to keep them when a couple breaks up.

"People may find if they draw up a pet-nup, there may be issues around its enforceability if there's a dispute, but we find if a couple agrees matters up front they usually stick to this."

Yeah you can have the dog all week and I'll just have 'em on weekends, sound fair?

Topics: UK News, Pets, Interesting, Community, Animals, Cats, Dogs

Jake Massey

Jake Massey is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from Newcastle University, where he learnt a bit about media and a lot about living without heating. After spending a few years in Australia and New Zealand, Jake secured a role at an obscure radio station in Norwich, inadvertently becoming a real-life Alan Partridge in the process. From there, Jake became a reporter at the Eastern Daily Press. Jake enjoys playing football, listening to music and writing about himself in the third person.

@jakesmassey