If you talk to judges or lawyers, they'll tell you that custody cases are among the most difficult cases they hear.
Or readers could talk to Judge Bonnie David, vice chancellor of the Delaware Court of Chancery. She's a judge in a nonjury court that adjudicates a wide variety of cases including trusts, real property and guardianships.
It's not family court, at least not in the legal sense. But the future of Tucker definitely is pulling the heartstrings of Karen Callahan and Joseph Nelson, each of whom wants sole custody of him.
Who is Tucker? He's a goldendoodle the couple got and shared before they split up and started fighting over custody.
Tucker, apparently, is a real charmer, because the judge sounds almost as smitten as his would-be owners.
"It is undisputed that Tucker is a very good boy," the judge noted in a footnote that was part of her recent 15-page decision that included a flattering photo of the dog.
Bouncing around the Delaware courts since 2022, the case recently landed in David's courtroom.
The judge is well aware of the emotional stakes. When and if it's resolved, someone will get Tucker, and someone won't.
"Such an outcome, though necessary, will inevitably result in disappointment -- possibly heartbreak -- for one of the parties," the judge wrote.
But how does a judge settle a dispute over the custody of a beloved dog that two parties each claim and love?
"Though the question presented is somewhat novel, I do not approach it from a blank slate," she wrote. "At common law, the default procedure for partition is a physical division in kind. Where physical division is not possible or would be detrimental to the co-owners, the alternative is an auction aimed at maximizing the value of the partitioned property for the benefit of the owners. In my view, longstanding common law gives us the right place to start the analysis -- with an auction that protects all the owners' interests by awarding ownership to the highest bidder while fairly compensating the losing bidder."
It might sound cold-hearted to those who view their pets as family members, but from a legal point of view, Tucker is considered property.
"Dogs are property, but they are not furniture; they are living, sentient beings with value that transcends economics," she wrote.
Both parties love Tucker. Both parties can and want to continue to care for Tucker. So let the bidding begin.
How much do the parties really want Tucker? One shudders at the prospect of finding out.
Why is that? Our pets have a way of burrowing deep into our hearts, offering companionship, unconditional love and what's perceived as empathy.
Perhaps that's why the judge began her opinion with an excerpt from Rudyard Kipling's poem "The Power of the Dog":
Buy a pup and your money will buy
Love unflinching that cannot lie --
Perfect passion and worship fed
By a kick in the ribs or a pat on the head.
...
When the spirit that answered your every mood
Is gone -- wherever it goes -- for good,
You will discover how much you care,
And will give your heart to a dog to tear.