Hello everyone!
Welcome to another AITA week. As the weather is cooling down, we hope you are all staying warm. It’s Dog Day this week, so this week’s newsletter is all about dogs.
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This Week’s Contents:
Asshole of the Week
Total Drama
Asshole of the Week
Posted by Reddit user RaspberryIcy4124
OP (26F) and her sister Sasha (31F) are, reportedly, “very different people.” Where OP has 3 kids — a 6-year-old, a 2.5-year-old, and a 1.5-year-old — Sasha has a dog.
Sasha got the dog after she graduated from college and formed a very strong bond with it (as you tend to do). The two would go on jogs, road trips and do search-and-rescue together. Sasha would dress the dog up for Halloween and take it trick-or-treating. OP wrote that she was worried that Sasha was “replacing real human interaction with a dog.”
Once the dog became too old and arthritic to jog with her, Sasha bought a jogging stroller so that she could still take it for walks. OP researched the stroller and discovered that it was valued at $400, intended for both pets and kids. OP thought that it was “insane” to spend that much money on a stroller for a dog, but knew that Sasha was excited and didn’t express her judgments.
Recently, Sasha’s dog passed away, leaving her devastated. OP attributed this to Sasha being “over-attached.” While OP felt bad for Sasha, she also began to think about the stroller. OP had been struggling to lose the baby weight from her youngest child. She imagined using the stroller with her 2.5-year old and 1.5-year old, jogging while her 6-year-old rode her bike alongside. She liked the idea, and knew that the jogging stroller was more expensive than anything she and her husband could afford at the moment, as they are not financially strong. Thinking about how Sasha had always been generous with her niece and nephews, she might be willing to loan OP the stroller — or perhaps even give it to her.
OP called Sasha and said how sorry she was about the dog. She then asked what Sasha was going to do with the stroller. Sasha replied that she was thinking of donating it to an animal shelter that specializes in disabled dogs. OP then summarized for Sasha why the stroller might be useful to her, and that maybe Sasha could donate it to the children instead. Sasha went off on OP, calling her a bitch and a vulture, and hung up the phone.
Our Opinion: YTA. The judgmental tone that OP takes in the post is unnecessary. While it may be considered excessive to buy an expensive stroller for a dog by some, it is very clear that the dog meant the world to Sasha. There is nothing wrong with being emotionally attached, also known as loving, a pet. It makes sense for OP to ask for the stroller, but it would have been much kinder and more considerate to give Sasha time to grieve and perhaps offer to buy it (for whatever OP and her husband could afford). Sasha may have even considered giving the stroller to OP if given more time.
Top Comment: “YTA. If someone called me 2 days after my pet died to try and finagle free shit, I’d be pissed as hell.” - Reddit user gleaming-the-cubicle
Notable Comment: “It’s bad enough OP is being selfish but then blaming their kids for wanting the stroller. If they were really thinking about the kids’ interests they could have just bought a stroller long ago. (If they can’t buy a new one they could always look for one on Marketplace.)” - Reddit user SpeedBlitzX
Total Drama
Posted by Reddit user DaLola001
AITA for refusing to take care of my husband’s dog?
OP (33F) and her husband, Ted (44M), have been arguing about cleaning up after Ted’s new puppy. It took Ted a long time to convince OP that they should get a puppy; OP was strongly against it at first, considering the added responsibility and the hard work that has to be put into a puppy. Ted got a puppy anyways. OP told Ted that she would not help with cleaning, training, feeding, etc. and that it would all be Ted’s responsibility, since he went behind her back. OP ended up helping with feeding, walking, and bathing the puppy, but refused to clean up its messes and accidents.
Ted has let some of the dog’s poop dry up on the carpet rather than cleaning it up. There are two spots — one in the master bedroom, one in the living room. OP has asked Ted to clean them up, but he always responds that he is busy and exhausted, and that he works more than OP so she should just do it. OP ended up blowing up at Ted.
Our Opinion: ESH. Both Ted and OP suck here. Ted sucks more than OP, considering that he went behind OP’s back and got a puppy when he knew that she didn’t want one only to dump half the responsibility on OP because he “works more.” Realistically, OP and Ted could have compromised; rescue an older dog who is already house-broken and trained. Now that the mistake has been made, however, they ought to put the dog up for adoption and find a more suitable home for it. Puppies require teamwork. Everyone ought to be on board, or it isn’t a suitable home.
Top Comment: “Since neither of you are cleaning up after the dog, will you please rehome the dog? He/she needs to be in a house with love, not used as a weapon against a spouse. Leaving the poop there is not training the dog properly, and not helping him/her. In addition, rehome Ted while you’re at it. His lack of respect, lack of responsibility, at his age is absurd. You married a petulant child. Do not procreate. ESH.” - Reddit user Popular-Emu7380