Case of puppy love: Ex-couple goes to court

Doreen Houseman is happy that her battle to gain custody of Dexter the pug has won the support of pet lovers across the country. But that's not what's important to her.

Her case has set legal precedent in New Jersey, but that doesn't impress her much, either.

Houseman just wants her dog back.

Tomorrow, a second trial on the custody of the nearly six-year-old brown pooch is set to begin. The Williamstown woman plans to testify again that her ex-fiancé broke an oral agreement to let her have the dog after she moved out of their house.

In March, a three-judge appeals panel ordered a new trial, saying Superior Court Judge John Tomasello should not have treated Dexter as just another piece of furniture during the first trial, in Gloucester County, in 2007. The new trial will be heard in Salem County, where Tomasello is now assigned.

Gina Calogero, Houseman's attorney, said the appeals panel had issued a "landmark decision" on pet custody, which she called an "emerging field and cutting-edge law." Calogero, who specializes in animal rights cases, says many judges are now being asked to decide who gets the pet when there is a breakup.

"Ten years ago, I never heard of any such case," said Calogero.

Now, she said, more than a handful of scattered cases have been decided and published - in Florida, California, Pennsylvania, and other places - but with no real consensus.

Before the ruling was issued in New Jersey, Houseman, a 35-year-old customer service manager, went on the TV circuit, appearing on Today and elsewhere to discuss her love of Dexter and how the courts behave when it comes to pets.

In an interview last week, Houseman said that having her pet taken from her was "like dealing with a death." She felt she had been wronged.

Tomasello had ruled Dexter was simply property and should go to the person possessing it. "Dogs are chairs; they're furniture; they're automobiles, they're pensions. They're not kids," he said, declining to consider Dexter's sentimental value as he divided the couple's assets.

Eric Dare, a Williamstown police officer, would keep the dog and would compensate Houseman $1,500 - the pedigree dog's purchase price - the judge said. "Canine affection" is irrelevant, Tomasello said.