Kids who have never had pets are attracted to them because they see others having fun with them, but what the kids don’t realize and their parents think of first are the less fun parts like taking care of the pet, buying them food, combing them, bringing them to the vet, etc.
Reddit user Ancient-Move-8356 is a dad who gave into his kids’ and wife’s requests to get a dog, with a promise he wouldn’t need to take care of it. Sadly, the family got a bit bored of the pet chores, so the dad presented them an ultimatum.
Dads who don't want dogs end up loving them the most, but this one is an exception
Image credits: sunsets_for_you (not the actual photo)
He didn't want a dog but was convinced by his family that he wouldn't need to take care of it, so he allowed them to get it
Image credits: Ancient-Move-8356
But he regretted his decision after about a year when the family got bored and his sense of duty made him do the pet chores
Image credits: Taber Andrew Bain (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Ancient-Move-8356
Annoyed, he gathered the family to present them an ultimatum and was called a jerk for bringing it up
In February 2020, the Original Poster (OP) and his family got a dog. The dad is not a dog person and he was opposed to the idea for the longest time, but after his wife and his teenage kids convinced him that he wouldn’t need to do anything to take care of it, he agreed to it.
Shortly after the pandemic started, and it’s safe to assume that the puppy was a great distraction and companion during the lockdown days, but the thing is that when life got back to normal and the dog wasn’t a puppy anymore, the family lost interest in it.
Also, the family was constantly home while the dog was growing up, so it got used to that routine, and now it was asking for that much attention that the wife and kids weren’t giving to it. The dad saw the problems and despite not being a dog person, he understood that it needed attention and care.
For a while he would walk the dog, he would clean its poop pies out of the back yard and would buy it food because nobody else would do it and didn’t care if it starved. The OP was annoyed because he was promised that he wouldn’t need to do any of this, so he talked with his family.
The dad told them that either they take care of the dog themselves, pay someone to take care of it or he is giving the dog to a friend who likes dogs and knows what it means to take care of it.
Image credits: Taro the Shiba Inu (not the actual photo)
The family didn’t take it well and the dad was called a jerk for being so harsh, but people in the comments respected that even though he didn’t particularly like dogs, he took the situation seriously and proposed options that didn’t even include an animal shelter.
Also, he admitted that he will miss it if they decide to rehome it, but he knows it will be neglected when he’s not home, which sometimes can be up to 24 days. Also, him doing the pet chores wasn’t a part of the initial agreement.
Commenters were also horrified at the wife’s hypocrisy and how irresponsible she was. People agreed that the dog would benefit from living with the friend more because if the family needed to be told to take care of the dog, they are irresponsible owners and the situation will repeat itself.
When the OP said that he is not a dog person and doesn’t want a pet, he meant it and isn’t one of those dads who are against having dogs but in the end love them the most. But surely he isn’t the only one, as it is clear how many dogs are returned to shelters or just left on the street.
OP’s family getting bored of the dog is actually one of the most common reasons why people give up their pets, as pointed out by Four Paws. They warn parents not to use pets to teach children responsibility unless they want a pet themselves because “this often does not work, and the parents end up having to take care of the pet or the pet is rehomed, surrendered or abandoned.”
Some of the other reasons mentioned were lack of experience, financial problems, change of life circumstances and pet behavioral problems. Many people faced the unexpected side of owning pets when they started getting them during lockdown, wanting someone to keep them company, or they had always wanted a pet and thought it was the perfect time to get one since they were home all the time.
Image credits: JimmyJK96 (not the actual photo)
But they didn’t evaluate what it takes to have a pet and according to Battersea Dog And Cats’ Home’s survey which included UK pet owners, “almost half of new owners said they ‘sometimes regret’ their decision to get a pet, with 73% of them saying their misgivings were due to training problems.”
A Forbes Advisor survey focused on American dog owners and it showed similar numbers: 54 percent of respondents said that they strongly or somewhat agree with the statement “I have regrets about getting my dog.”
Among the top reasons for their regret, respondents mentioned cleaning up after their dogs, finding care for them when they’re traveling or are away at work and training the dog. The cost of having a dog was also a big one because the study found that “31% of dog owners say they can’t afford up to $2,000 in vet bills, even if the treatment could extend or potentially save the dog’s life.”
To say that a pet is not a toy is cliche, but it seems it is worth repeating it because statistics show that people are often not prepared to take care of their pet, not realizing that it will stick with them for a while.
The OP actually was aware of the challenges and trusted that his family also was because per their agreement, the kids and the wife were supposed to deal with them. But they broke that trust and the dad tried to find a solution that would benefit both him and the dog.
How do you feel about his ultimatum? Do you think the options were fair? Do you think the man was being harsh or do you feel it is the only way to highlight how irresponsible the rest of the family was with regard to the dog? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
But Reddit users saw the decision to be responsible and were actually impressed seeing that the man wasn't a dog person
