A Vet Tech Warns Neighborhood Kids About The Dangers Of Keeping Their Dog Off-Leash, Ends Up Getting Screamed At By Their Mother
Knowing how to best handle situations involving children that do not belong to you can be hard. There are so many moving parts regarding personalities, temperament, parenting styles, and everyone’s feelings.
When safety is the main issue, I do wish some parents would be more open to receiving advice. It’s not a personal attack when someone points out ways to help you and your family continue on in a safer way.
Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Fragile and otherwise easily bruised egos get in the way, and genuine advice given to help is completely ignored and reconstrued as an attack on their parenting skills.
One Redditor recently found this out the hard way while walking their roommate's pup. A veterinary technician by trade, u/WTFisMinWageAnyway was faced with a situation that they initially assumed they handled thoughtfully and considerately.
While walking their roommate’s small dog around the neighborhood, another similarly sized dog rushed up to them, unleashed and jumping at OP to get a sniff of the dog in their care. Following not too far behind were two girls not much older than middle school-aged.
Keep scrolling to read the full story shared on Reddit’s AITA forum, and how commenters rated them on the A-hole scale.
OP explained that while walking their roommates dog, two young girls came running after their unleashed dog in the street
WTFisMinWageAnywayAnd on their way back to the house, the same thing happened again, this time, OP tried to gently educate the kids about the dangers of their pup being off-leash
WTFisMinWageAnywayOP even gave them a slip lead from their vet tech job to help keep their dog safe
WTFisMinWageAnywayRight after, the girls' mother ran out and scolded OP for the interaction and the gift of the leash, calling it a "noose"
WTFisMinWageAnywayWhat a slip lead looks like for anyone unfamiliar
americastestkitchenOverwhelmingly, commenters were quick to assure OP they weren't in the wrong
ConfusionPossible590OP was picking up the slack on educating how to properly raise a dog
giphy
Ignorance isn't always bliss
dovahshy13
Dogs being off a leash in public is illegal in a lot of places
cannibal-vegan
And anyone could easily call animal control on their pup wandering freely
tenor
One of the very few commenters who pointed out that OP should have spoken to an adult, not children
mxcrnt2
Speaking to the parent would have avoided the whole kerfuffle in the first place
AGoodSO
And that by going directly to the children, it may have been upsetting to the parent for multiple reasons
cannibal-vegan
A parent would reasonably be more concerned about what exactly went on between the stranger and their kid
AGoodSOc
It's definitely hard to believe someone would be so upset over OP's thoughtful attempt to educate for the dogs (and children's) safety
BadAdviceGiver666
If the talk with the kids in general didn't set anyone straight, maybe appealing to parental fears could
jonnyroquette
A vet tech would definitely know first hand the dangers of off-leash dogs
tosser9212
If a free leash isn't good enough, maybe they should look into buying one they'd prefer
Cosmic_SparkleDust
OP was helping keep the dog AND the kids safe
FoxPawsFauxPas
They could always get a different leash if they don't like the slip lead
giphy
Redditors eventually rated u/WTFisMinWageAnyway Not The A-hole, as they were doing their best to look out for the neighbor pup and their family by proxy. Let us know your thoughts about the situation and rating in the comments section!
Ultimately, while I fully believe that OP had the best intentions and I don’t feel like they were an A-Hole for giving the neighbor kids some sound dog advice, I do agree with some of the commenters who suggested that they should have spoken directly with the parent(s), and not the children.
