RAISING DOGS OVER CHILDREN: Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes are criticized for their rotten personalities. The two fought over the custody of a dog, neglecting their child (video) – Full video below

TV’s ‘golden couple’, Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes, are reportedly undergoing difficult conversations about who will get custody of their dog after their divorce.

After 14 years of marriage, the pair declared they would officially part ways after work commitments ‘took their marriage in different directions’, but what does this mean for their beloved pooch Maggie?

Ruth and Eamonn are said to be avoiding bringing in lawyers, unlike Ant McPartlin and his ex-wife Lisa Armstrong, who fought for custody of their chocolate Labrador, Hurley, during their bitter divorce.

According to legal experts, firms across the UK have seen a rise in the number of people seeking legal advice over what happens to their pet’s following a break-up and research from Direct Line Insurance showed that 27 per cent of splits in 2021 involved custody of a pet.

Meanwhile, the Blue Cross animal charity reported that 10 per cent of people said they had lost a pet during a breakup with a partner.

Celebrities too are not immune. In addition to Eamonn and Ruth’s struggles, Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, as well as Amber Heard and Johnny Depp, have also fought over their pets.

So, what is the UK law and who can claim ownership of the dog? Here, FEMAIL brings you everything you need to know if you split up with pets involved….

How pet ownership is decided?

Although pets are often much-loved members of a family, under UK law, pets are considered a person’s property, like a piece of furniture or a car.

Therefore, legal ownership is decided on the basis of proof of ownership – basically, the person who bought the dog owns the dog.

If a couple buys a dog jointly, they both own it and would more than likely need to share the dog following a split. However a court does not have the power to order a legal owner to give access to the non-legal owner.

If a dog is bought as a gift, there must be evidence of this.