Children often form deep bonds with their pets, making it even more heartbreaking when they lose them. A Reddit user recently asked whether she was in the wrong for buying a new dog for her daughter while her son was still grieving the loss of their old dog.
The Lost the Family Dog
The Original Poster (OP) is a 39-year-old with two children aged 10 and 8. 5 months ago, their family dog, Peanuts, sadly passed away.
OP’s 10-year-old son was deeply saddened by his demise. He is a shy young boy with few friends, and his best friend was the family’s furry dog.
OP says that although they were all deeply saddened by the situation, the son was the most affected. To cope with that, he even sought therapy.
Her Son Struggled With the Loss
While her 8-year-old daughter also experienced sadness, she quickly recovered.
Then several weeks after Peanuts passed away, OP’s daughter started requesting a new pet dog.
So, OP decided to buy her daughter a new puppy for her birthday, hoping it would help the family move on from losing their dog.
A New Puppy
However, her son didn’t like the idea, but OP’s husband supported it.
Her son said that a new puppy would serve as a daily reminder of their beloved Peanut.
He could not stand the idea and began to dislike his sister for always bringing it up. On the other hand, the daughter said that she would be sad if we didn’t get another puppy.
Finally, the parents made the choice to give her a puppy for her birthday.
OP was really hoping that after her son saw the new puppy, he would like her and perhaps love her more.
But OP was mistaken.
He Son Didn’t Take It Well
When they revealed the dog at OP’s daughter’s birthday party, her son had a breakdown.
He screamed and cursed before attempting to run away from the house.
He was taken by OP’s mother-in-law to her place to calm him down.
While the puppy is still there, OP’s son said he won’t return home.
He Won’t Come Home
OP’s in-laws are criticizing her husband and her for “favoring” their daughter and prioritizing her desires over their son’s needs.
OP took to Reddit to ask whether she was in the wrong, although she says she did it for her children’s happiness.
The Reddit community was furious at the mother for her decision.
One Reddit user commented that they all should have gone as a family to choose a new family dog together and not reveal her as a surprise gift to just the daughter.
They comment, “You didn’t allow your son to bond with a dog that would have reminded him of happy memories of his last dog. He needs to learn he can’t avoid the memories of his past friend. He needs to get to a place where he can remember and think of him fondly in a way that brings joy.”
Many other Redditors criticized the mother for not taking into consideration her son’s mental health, saying that her daughter being sad as she wants a dog is not the same thing as her son being traumatized by the loss of a dog.
As parents, it is natural to want to make their children happy and alleviate their pain.
However, it is also important to consider the feelings and well-being of all family members involved.
In this case, the mother may have made a mistake in not fully considering a new dog’s impact on her son’s mental health. Clearly, the son was not ready for a new pet and needed more time to heal from the loss of the family dog.
The mother should have taken his feelings more seriously and found other ways to support her daughter without risking her son’s well-being.
So what do you think? Did the mother do the right thing?
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The post She Bought a New Puppy to Replace the Last One, but It Traumatized Her Son Even More first appeared on Wealthy Living
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Source: Reddit