She Hates Her Boyfriend’s Aggressive Dog, And Now She’s Even Considering Breaking Up With Him Over The Pet
This 29-year-old woman has been in a relationship with her boyfriend, 32, for nine months. He has a 6-year-old male dog, but his dog has been at his mom’s house for about three or four years. The dog is a mix of Doberman, Pitbull, chihuahua, and Chow Chow.
Her boyfriend dated his ex-girlfriend for four years, and they bought the dog in 2019 when they were still together. From what her boyfriend told her, there was toxicity in their relationship, and they fought constantly. They argued so much that it negatively affected him and their dog.
“He and I also fight occasionally as a couple, and I asked if it’s at the same frequency or level. He made it clear we never fight to the same level/intensity. The fighting caused a lot of trauma to the dog. They had different expectations regarding dog training,” she said.
The pandemic also impacted how much and how effectively her boyfriend and his ex trained their dog. He moved in with his mom when he and his ex-girlfriend ended their relationship. Later, he found an apartment in a bigger city (where she and her boyfriend live).
When he allowed his dog to stay at his apartment for a weekend, he had to bring him back to his mom’s house because he was so poorly behaved. Recently, her boyfriend mentioned attempting to bring his dog to his apartment again, but she hates the idea.
In the early 1990s, her family bought a cocker spaniel from a breeder. Later, they adopted a basset hound from an animal shelter. Since dogs have been in her family’s home her whole life, she’s comfortable around them. When other family members adopted dogs, she helped care for them. She’s always adored dogs.
“I go to the dog show yearly and get excited learning about new breeds. In my early 20s, I wanted to get a dog for a while. I’d watch training videos to prepare. But ultimately, I knew I couldn’t give this dog the absolute best possible life I wanted,” she explained.
Because she lives in a big city and doesn’t have a backyard or a lot of disposable income to spend on a dog, she knew that it would be a huge responsibility to take on alone.
Over the years, she told herself she’d buy a dog when she was married or in a relationship with someone who also wanted one. She wanted to wait for the perfect time. Since she wanted to give a dog the most wonderful life possible, she’s put off her dream.
Tanya – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual dog
“His dog is not good. He has bit six people and has extreme anxiety. Due to that, the dog acts aggressively (barks for an extended period, growls, hair raises, and tail between legs),” she shared.
Her boyfriend’s dog doesn’t know how else to handle the anxiety, so he acts out. Unfortunately, he takes a long time to settle down. During get-togethers, when the dog is around, her boyfriend has to keep him on a leash until the guests leave or lock him in a kennel upstairs.
Because the dog wants to protect her boyfriend and his family, he doesn’t trust people he doesn’t know. Even if it’s clear the people are nice, her boyfriend’s dog never calms down.
Aside from aggressive behavior, his dog sits on the couch and sleeps on the bed. Because he’s so protective of her boyfriend, he has another behavior she coined “‘Velcro dog'” in which he forces himself between people to be close to her boyfriend. Every attempt to train his dog not to do any of these behaviors has been unsuccessful.
If her boyfriend brought his dog to live with him, she’s concerned it would negatively affect their relationship. She couldn’t have get-togethers at their shared apartment if his dog were around, so she’d rather his dog continue living with his mom in her suburban home.
However, she acknowledged that since it’s not her dog, the final decision is up to her boyfriend. She’s considering ending the relationship.
What advice would you give her?
You can read the original post on Reddit here.
Sign up for Chip Chick’s newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
More About:Relationships