Internet split over man's choice of pet that went against dying best friend's wishes
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: A Reddit user's revelation that they refused to adopt their dying best friend's dog has sparked debate among netizens. The scenario was posted by Original Poster (OP) u/SB_MACK in the popular Reddit group 'Am I The A**hole?' where it received more than 13K upvotes and close to 6K comments.
In a Reddit post titled "AITA For not adopting my dying best friends dog and buying a puppy from a breeder instead?" OP started off by saying that their best friend was dying of cancer. OP continued, "Today, I was visiting and showed him a picture of the German Shepard puppy I just put a security deposit on. It will be ready to take home in 4 weeks. I’ve always wanted a German Shepard puppy, so I was excited to show him the pictures—and I thought maybe the pictures would bring him at least a moment of joy—even if the moment was fleeting."
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However, OP's friend didn't seem to share the same enthusiasm as OP. The OP wrote, "But instead of sharing my excitement, things became awkward. After a few minutes of awkwardness—I asked him what was wrong. I was blindsided by his response. He said that his cousin, who was supposed to take his 2 year old Pug named 'Horace' could no longer take him and I could save a lot of money by taking his dog."
'He’s a little sh*t'
OP added, "I looked over at Horace and he looked backed at me. Well, he tried to look at me—but he’s got one wondering eye that pretty much is always looking towards the ceiling. I could feel his glare with his good eye though. Horace is not a good dog. This is not me being an a**hole—this is simply me knowing Horace. He’s a little sh*t and on top of that—he sh*ts in the house and he tears stuff up. He's always yapping. He’s always wanting something. He doesn't even know what he wants. He literally just wants to want something. Nonstop. He was never properly trained."
OP shared their general dislike of the pug dog breed. "I’m not a fan of the 'Pug' dog breed. Their faces look it’s been hit with a shovel. They are always gasping for air with their eyes bulged out as if they are stranded without a space helmet in the Martian atmosphere."
'He’s just not a good dog'
OP continued, "I told my friend, 'No thank you. But, I will try to help you find him a good home.' 'Really?' He says. 'Are you f-ing kidding me? You’ve known Horace since he was a puppy.' 'I know, that’s why I don’t want him. He’s just—not a good dog.' 'Wow. You are such an a**hole,' My friend says." OP concluded the post by asking, "So…am I?"
'It's a LOT harder to untrain bad habits'
The internet seemed divided, with almost 6K people leaving comments on the post. One user commented, "OP is not an AH for not taking a 2 year old untrained dog OP does not like or want. I know a woman who had several untrained dogs. When she had to move, the new owners (dogs went to a shelter) had their hands full retraining the dogs. And they loved and wanted the dogs. It's a LOT harder to untrain bad habits, particularly when you don't like the dog, than it is to teach new ones."
'Your response was definitely a-holeish'
Another user wrote, "LOL - you sweet summer child... You are in for quite a surprise when you bring that German Shepherd puppy home if you have a hard time dealing with Horace. That said, ESH (Everyone S*cks Here). You are not obligated to take someone else's dog. I don't like Pugs either - too many health issues and not something I'd want to take on. However, you could have dealt with it in a kinder way given the situation. Your response was definitely a-holeish."
'He’s allowed to not want his friends dog'
A third wrote, "Committing to your own puppy and toilet training them and all that comes with it is not the same thing as adopting an untrained adult dog. He’s allowed to not want his friends dog lol They are 2 hugely different breeds NTA."
'Not all dogs are good dogs'
A fourth user commented, "There’s a huge difference between a puppy piddling and pooping in the house and being trained not to do so. And a 2 year old adult dog pooping in the house and not having seemingly trained not to do so. Same with tearing stuff up. My puppies grew out of that by a year. This dog is 2 and still tears stuff up. Not all dogs are good dogs. And if op has a preference for a dog companion that she’ll raise and share her life with for 15+ years why can’t she pick the kind that would suit her and her lifestyle better? Nta."
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