NEED TO KNOW
- After a painful breakup, a woman adopted a senior dog who helped her emotionally heal and became her closest companion
- Ten months later, the dog’s former owners, who had surrendered him due to a pregnancy, asked for him back
- Supporters online weighed in on whether or not the new owner was obligated to give the dog back
One woman’s healing journey took an unexpected turn after the shelter dog who helped her rebuild her life suddenly became wanted again — by the family who once gave him up.
The poster, who shared her story on the “Am I The A——?” Reddit, says her world was turned upside down just over a year ago when she discovered her fiancé was cheating on her.
“I was engaged and I found out my fiancé was cheating on me,” she wrote. “I was living in a condo he owned, and even though he wanted to ‘try to make things work,’ I couldn’t do it so I left and moved home temporarily.”
The original poster, or OP, wrote that moving back in with her parents at 32 wasn’t in her plans, and it took a major toll on her emotional well-being. “I was sad, embarrassed and my mental health wasn’t good,” she wrote. Thankfully, with the support of her parents, a flexible job that allowed her to take a leave of absence and plenty of therapy, she slowly began to recover. “After a lot of therapy and tough work I started to feel somewhat human again, but still very much sad.”
That’s when she decided to adopt a pet. Encouraged by her therapist, she visited a local rescue with the plan of finding an emotional support puppy. However, a senior dog captured her heart.
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“I didn’t expect to find an older dog — he’s 7 — who had been given up when his owners were expecting a child,” OP wrote. “He was so sad, and honestly a bigger breed than I was thinking of, but I grew up with dogs.”
She learned that the dog’s previous owner had him before getting married, but the new wife felt he wouldn’t be safe around a baby, even though he had “no history of aggression and just seemed timid and depressed,” the writer determined.
Over the course of 10 months, the OP and her new dog bonded and became inseparable.
“I cook for him, we watch movies, he is amazing motivation for me to get out and walk every day,” she wrote. “I have human friends of course but this dog is my bestie and I can’t imagine not having him.”
However, things got a little complicated when the dog’s original owners wanted him back. According to the rescue, the wife of the couple regretted giving the dog up. “Apparently there is something where I guess pregnant women become fearful or whatever with animals?” the OP wrote. “The husband never wanted to give the dog up but it was an ultimatum the wife gave.”
Of course, the new dog mom didn’t want to give the dog back to the family who “tossed him away.” OP then asked the rescue not to contact her again, proceeded to block them on social media out of concern that the former owner might try to reach out directly.
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Her story has struck a chord online, with many echoing her sentiment in the comment section, and deeming her NTA, or “Not The A——.”
“Keep your dog,” one commenter wrote. “They don’t have a legal leg to stand on.” Another added, “Don’t even spare them another thought. This is your family member.”
Commenters suggested getting the dog micro-chipped and taking additional steps to make sure that the family doesn’t know where she lives. Some Redditors were even shocked that the rescue messaged OP at all, adding that normally “they just tell the old owners ‘sorry.’ ”
“Most rescues would never, ever ask an adopter to give an animal back to the previous owner,” echoed another comment. “In a very few rare cases, they let the party that surrendered the animal take the animal back, but that’s only if the animal hasn’t been adopted yet.”
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