Dachshund at Center of Canine Custody Case

A Delaware judge has overturned a lower court decision in a canine custody case involving a disputed dachshund.
 
The judge this week said a common pleas judge wrongly gave Michael Fosset exclusive possession of a dog he bought at the urging of a former live-in girlfriend.
 
Fosset's ex claimed the dog was a gift to her, but the lower court said it was jointly owned and Fosset was entitled to possession because he bought it in contemplation of a relationship with her.
 
The Superior Court said the lower court wrongly expanded a law regarding the "symbolic significance" of gifts in "contemplation of marriage" to include gifts in "contemplation of a relationship."
 
The judge declared that the dog was simply property with the same legal status as a piece of furniture.