Court orders estranged couple to bid in private auction for custody of goldendoodle

A Delaware judge unleashed a novel way to settle a case of canine custody.

On Nov. 14, a judge in Delaware’s Chancery Court found a way to settle a dispute between an estranged couple over possession of an adorable goldendoodle named Tucker.

Karen Callahan and Joseph Nelson jointly cared for the animal while dating. After being neighbors, they moved in together at Nelson’s residence in Bear, Delaware, in January 2019 before breaking up in 2022, court documents stated.

Tucker was added to the group in April 2020.

Both requested Tucker in court filings, so Judge Bonnie W. David ordered the couple to bid against one another in a private auction.

The winner gets 5-year-old Tucker, while the loser gets the cash.

“Dogs are property, but they are not furniture,” David said in her ruling, adding that they are “living, sentient beings with value that transcends economics.”

David acknowledged that the process will probably be ruff -- that is, rough -- for the loser.

The result “will inevitably result in disappointment — possibly heartbreak — for one of the parties,” she said.

The sole exhibit in the filing was a photo of a pouting Tucker on the beach, blissfully unaware of the controversy he has caused.

“It is undisputed that Tucker is a very good boy,” David said.

The case was unusual for David, who normally decides disputes between Fortune 500 companies since many are incorporated in Delaware.

An auction was the fairest option, the judge said, since the former couple could not agree about Tucker’s future.

“While a few courts have applied a best-interests standard when resolving ownership disputes over a companion animal, none have explained why that approach should prevail over the common law default of a value-maximizing auction,” she said.

David opened her opinion by quoting Rudyard Kipling’s poem “The Power of the Dog,” which warns readers about the possible sorrow that could happen when you “give your heart to a dog to tear.”

The dispute over Tucker’s ownership began when Callahan and Nelson broke up. Three other state courts decided the couple shared joint custody.

Callahan, who has not seen the goldendoodle since the breakup, asked the Chancery Court for a “transparent auction.” Nelson wanted the judge to consider “Tucker’s best interest.”

David decided in May to “partition” Tucker. The statute defaults to a physical division of property, or a public auction if the parties can’t agree.

“Karen loves Tucker and has been fighting for a chance to see him again for three years now,” William B. Larson Jr., an attorney for Callahan told The Washington Post.

An attorney for Nelson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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