From the tip of their bleps to their tiny toe beans, cats have been enchanting humans for millennia, so it’s fair to say the bond between a cat and its owner can be one of fierce loyalty, even if dogs have a better reputation for that.
One woman recently turned to an online community to share the story of how her boyfriend demanded she kick out the family cat, all because the pet was gifted to her by another man. When push came to shove, her boyfriend was blindsided by her response.
Pets are the perfect companions, and this woman’s bond with her cat was unbreakable
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
A coworker moving to another state had gifted the fluffy feline to her, and her kids were smitten with the kitten
Image credits: Yerlin Matu / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The woman’s boyfriend, however, hated the cat to the point where he said he didn’t even feel like feeding it when she was away
Image credits: Toa Heftiba / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
As it turned out, her boyfriend was insecure about the cat being a gift from her coworker, whom he suspected had a crush on her
Image credits: Pablo Merchán Montes / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
He demanded she get rid of the cat, and that's when the relationship ruckus really kicked off
Image credits: International_Bit448
In an update to her original post, the woman says she ended up calling it quits rather than give up the cat, much to her boyfriend’s disbelief
When OP adopted a sweet cat for her kids from a moving coworker, she never imagined it would spark a breakup. Her boyfriend, who’d dated her for years, suddenly declared the cat “tainted” because it came from a guy who’d once had a crush on her. Uh, what?
He refused to feed the cat while she was away, saying it reminded him of “that other guy.” Here’s the kicker: she wasn’t even interested in the coworker; she only took in the cat for her kids. When her boyfriend demanded she get rid of it, she stood her ground and said the cat was going nowhere.
Her boyfriend said she was “choosing a cat over him.”, but for OP, it wasn’t just about the fluffy feline, it was about not sacrificing comfort or dignity to prove her love. After a heated argument, she called it quits on the relationship, and that’s when his true colors really came out. Gaslighting. Mocking. Manipulation. All unexpected ugliness.
Luckily, OP wasn’t fooled. The breakup sucked, but it brought clarity. She changed her locks, kept the cat safe, and walked away with her self-respect intact. Netizens agreed it was a huge bullet dodged, and the purring proof is sitting in her lap.
Image credits: Timur Weber / Pexels (not the actual photo)
From what OP tells us in her post, besides his insecurity about the cat, her boyfriend seems to have been hiding his true character for years, only revealing it once she put her foot down. So, what are the red flags you should be looking out for, so you don’t waste years on a romantic relationship like OP did? We went looking for answers.
In her article for Psychology Today, Abigail Brenner (M.D.) lists several relationship red flags, some of which include a lack of communication, irresponsible, immature, and unpredictable behavior, a lack of trust, negative feedback from friends and family, controlling behavior, and feelings of insecurity in the relationship.
In her article for PsychCentral, Hilary I. Lebow writes that a controlling partner is likely to use manipulation tactics that may affect your self-perception and invalidate how you feel. Learning some of the signs of a controlling partner may help you make an informed and safe decision about your relationship.
According to Lebow, a few signs of being in a relationship with a controlling partner include them micromanaging you, making decisions for you, being overprotective, invading your privacy, isolating you from others, playing the blame game, gaslighting, and ignoring your boundaries.
It’s too bad OP’s boyfriend took so long to drop the mask and reveal what a jerk he really was, but better late than never, we guess? At least the cat’s going nowhere, and that’s all that really matters.
What would you have done if you’d found yourself in OP’s shoes? Do you think her manipulative boyfriend deserved to be kicked to the curb? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
In the comments, readers slammed the boyfriend for being childish, manipulative, and absurd, and swiftly agreed the original poster wasn’t being a jerk for choosing the cat over him
