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AIBU?

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Original poster

Deliberately running over frogs with a lawnmower

87 replies

SlinkyMalinkyy · 24/04/2026 09:33

When I was with my ex he saw no issue if there was a frog/frogs on the lawn he would deliberately run it over with the lawn mower with the kids watching. He would laugh while doing it. The first time he did it I saw the frog on the lawn and I thought it would be nice to show the kids, teach them about frogs maybe take it to a local park/lake. DH hacked it to bits! 😭 His excuse was that he had always seen his grandfather do this and it was no big deal. MIL got the kids involved in pouring boiling water over ants too. So any attempts to foster empathy for living things was over ridden.

Kids are older now but he still does this. It seems unnecessarily cruel to me and teaches the children a lack of empathy for living things.

AIBU in thinking this is not normal especially in front of children? It was part of a wider pattern of problematic behaviour. No frog is safe! 🐸

OP posts:
Original poster
SlinkyMalinkyy · 24/04/2026 09:50

Mapletreelane · 24/04/2026 09:44

Surely this can't be true? So many red flags what a cruel vile and sick person. Surely someone who does this would exhibit other awful behaviour. You seem to trivialise it as well with your last sentence. I wouldn't let him anywhere near my kids.

I don't think this is true. If my partner did this it would make me feel so sick I couldn't go near them ever again.

Edited

I’m not trying to trivialise it, I promise. I found it awful but his excuse was he saw it growing up and thought it normal. There was other awful behaviour which is why I left him. He did say once that he thought he might be a psychopath but then backtracked as he said I would probably use that as a weapon against him.

OP posts:
Quine0nline · 24/04/2026 09:49

Does it still have access to your children? It does not deserve to, if it does.
There is a clear correlation between abusing animals and abusing humans.

Please distance yourself and your children from it.

Original poster
SlinkyMalinkyy · 24/04/2026 09:47

Thanks everyone. He was cruel in other ways which is why I left but this seemed particularly cruel especially as he seemed to enjoy hacking them to bits and in front of our kids. Unfortunately the kids now display a lack of empathy towards living things like ex as he always undermined me, I keep trying to teach them empathy and compassion though.

OP posts:
EmeraldRoulette · 24/04/2026 09:46

Christ

Where has he hidden the human bodies? I'm not even joking.

BTW, I love frogs. I don't see a lot of them these days. The nearest lake doesn't seem to have them. We do have swans and geese and stuff so maybe that's a bit too much for the frogs? Maybe they're hanging out a bit that's not accessible to the public.

Mapletreelane · 24/04/2026 09:44

Surely this can't be true? So many red flags what a cruel vile and sick person. Surely someone who does this would exhibit other awful behaviour. You seem to trivialise it as well with your last sentence. I wouldn't let him anywhere near my kids.

I don't think this is true. If my partner did this it would make me feel so sick I couldn't go near them ever again.

Shoxfordian · 24/04/2026 09:42

He's cruel - and I'd be surprised if it was only to frogs. Are you still together?

ChequerToRed · 24/04/2026 09:41

Thank fuck he’s your ex.
What an absolute headcase, those poor, lovely frogs.

IsawwhatIsaw · 24/04/2026 09:41

We have a small pond, there are so many frogs and tadpoles in there at the moment and I like to watch them.
i can’t get my head around someone doing this . Deliberately killing wildlife for fun.

PedanticPrincess · 24/04/2026 09:39

Disgusting behaviour! A life is a life, no matter how small. I won’t even squash bugs or spiders!

Villanousvillans · 24/04/2026 09:39

That’s just awful. Definitely psychopath behaviour.

DailyRitual · 24/04/2026 09:37

He sounds like a fucking psychopath. I leave a few patches of shady unmown grass in our garden because it’s where frogs like to hang out.

TheChosenTwo · 24/04/2026 09:36

That’s absolutely awful, what a sick bastard. When dh finds one (we live right behind a big lake) he calls us all out to see it and then we try and get it to hop back towards the fence it must have hopped under. Usually with quite farcical results but Jesus Christ to masochistically run it over as a laugh is cruel.
and yes I do eat meat before someone says it’s no different.

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