Ohio bill would include pets in protection orders

COLUMBUS — Courts could add pets to protection orders in cases of alleged domestic violence and other crimes, under legislation OK’d by the Ohio House.

SB 177 passed on a vote of 84-1 and heads back to the Senate for concurrence on amendments.

The legislation would allow judges to include pets when issuing civil stalking or sexually oriented offense protection, domestic violence and other orders.

Courts could order alleged offenders from “abusing, threatening, injuring, concealing, disposing of or interfering with the care, custody and control of a companion animal,” according to an analysis by the state’s Legislative Service Commission.