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Original poster

What am I to do about this - dog?

173 replies

XmasStag · 08/12/2023 19:17

I'm babysitting for the weekend within a friend's home. I am minding her children They have a pet dog. I know the dog well and I see the dog nearly most days and the dog is friendly and we get on well too. The dog knows me and we both love each other.

However the dog didn't eat his breakfast this morning. It would be too soon for him to notice that his owners are gone for the weekend because they go to work during the week and he's used to them being away. So I don't think the refusing of food is anything to do with his owners being away.

He went out to toilet at about 3.30. I stood at the door a while ago and called his name but he never came. I called him a few times.

It should be his dinner time now too. He does have a hiding place at the end of the garden but it's too cold, wet, windy and dark to go out there for me right now.

Am I to supposed to keep shouting his name at the door or am I supposed to wait for the kids to go to sleep then go outside for him. I don't fancy going out side to him later on when the kids are asleep either because it will be much later too.

What am I supposed to do?
Will I continue shouting his name at the door or go out for him later on or just leave him out for the night?

OP posts:
Bs0u416d · 08/12/2023 23:07

I'm getting so fed up of made up, bullshit posts FFS.

BadLad · 08/12/2023 23:36

SnowyMcSnowball · 08/12/2023 22:34

Jesus, I'm glad you're not caring for my dog! Put a coat on and go look. Do you have a heart of stone?

The dog has been found and is now tucking into some cheese and biscuits.

Or something

grumpycow1 · 08/12/2023 23:38

What the fuck have I just read 😂

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Dogs
Fourfurrymonsters · 08/12/2023 23:48

adorablecat · 08/12/2023 22:33

Good God, it's amazing how many people on Mumsnet would prioritise a dog over a sick child.

Most grown-ups with a lick of sense can actually look after both kids and dog even when they’re sick. Revolutionary, I know. I have several old, arthritic dogs and there’s not a chance I’d be leaving any of them out for 4 hours in this cold weather, never mind the fact the OP was contemplating leaving him out all night ffs. If she had she may well have woken up to a dead dog which I’m guessing even you don’t want, right?
Honest to gods I despair at grown fkg adults these days who don’t seem able to juggle the simplest of tasks or employ any common sense whatsoever to a given situation without making a titanic amount of drama over it.

Barbiegirl2013 · 09/12/2023 00:02

why on earth would you give a dog broth??? There is far too much salt in that and onions etc are toxic, there are also many dogs with allergies to chicken. My DMs dog died because a neighbour gave her chicken when she was allergic. It’s also incredibly cruel not to go looking for the dog in the cold, dark garden just because it ‘didn’t appeal to you’. You sound absolutely awful and should decline to babysit next time if you can’t provide adequate care for the dog too.

PyongyangKipperbang · 09/12/2023 00:06

supersop60 · 08/12/2023 22:12

Oh, laundry as well now?

Well as the kids has D&V......not unreasonable surely? Unless you leave sick and shit covered bed linen to in case the dog is a bit unhappy......

Moveoverdarlin · 09/12/2023 00:16

Posts like these are precisely why I would never use a babysitter / house sitter or dog Walker.

I can’t imagine leaving my DD whilst she’s vomiting and shitting with a neighbour. You must be very close. Do the parents know their daughter is this unwell? I’d be racing back.

Justwanttotravel · 09/12/2023 00:41

FFS it’s a dog!

dontgobaconmyheart · 09/12/2023 01:05

Good Lord OP if this is true what a load of nonsense. What do the parents and owner of the dog have to say about all of this? If i were them and heard all of this I'd be home immediately to politely relieve you of any further duties. I do hope you have in fact, called them and let them know what is going on in their home and what you are doing with their dog. I would be so angry at this and so worried.

Don't feed the dog broth, it's dangerous, don't feed it anything other than it's own dog food, which it will eat if it's hungry and when it is feeling less stressed from being separated from it's owners and passed on to a neglectful wally that left it out on the cold before trying to finish it off with the wrong food, Call it's owners and tell them everything.

PyongyangKipperbang · 09/12/2023 01:10

I took my older DD's to Paris Disney and left 12 month old DD with my parents. Within a few hours of us leaving (and arriving in France) DD developed a bad bug. Parents lied, said she was fine and we were happy. Their (correct) thinking was that I would want to rush back and probably wouldnt get there before she was better and it would ruin our trip.

So I wouldnt necessarily judge them for not coming back.

Tacotortoise · 09/12/2023 03:41

Barbiegirl2013 · 09/12/2023 00:02

why on earth would you give a dog broth??? There is far too much salt in that and onions etc are toxic, there are also many dogs with allergies to chicken. My DMs dog died because a neighbour gave her chicken when she was allergic. It’s also incredibly cruel not to go looking for the dog in the cold, dark garden just because it ‘didn’t appeal to you’. You sound absolutely awful and should decline to babysit next time if you can’t provide adequate care for the dog too.

Left the dog in the garden? If only it had legs and could have easily walked back to the house....

Itwasafterallallaboutme · 09/12/2023 05:16

I didn't know I was holding my breath until @XmasStag told us that DDog was back again inside, I gave a sort of mixture of a big sigh and a gasp when I read that. I know that like me, other readers were becoming more and more frustrated and stressed at the OP's dreadful choices, especially when she still wasn't going out immediately to search for the gorgeous Mr Canine.

However, having had time to relax a bit after that great news, I am now getting incensed with anger, because we have been told that the dog is old and arthritic, and yet she still left him for nearly four hours before even wondering about whether he should be back indoors by then, and she was even considering leaving the poor thing out all night! If she had done that I think that considering the poor DDog's age, health, and the weather tonight, anyone who found the DDog in the morning, would have found one that would never wake up again...

@XmasStag, did you not consider asking another neighbour or friend if they could pop over and look for the dog when it was not back after 15 minutes?
How old are the children OP, if old enough then surely the one who wasn't sick, could have gone into their own garden to look for their dear pet?
If neither you nor the children tell the parents the truth when they return home, then please at least have the decency to refuse any more child/pet sitting requests in the future.

Having said all of the above, I want to add that I am not at all convinced that this is not a made up tail tale from the OP, just like a PP was virtually suggesting when she pointed out the discrepancy between the OP still being inside the house at a certain time, and then 3 minutes later she was back indoors with the family's beloved pet, having gone down a long driveway to find the poor thing waiting by the gate for his dear parents to come home. Maybe the OP can explain to us this rather strange anomaly?

Itwasafterallallaboutme · 09/12/2023 05:25

Tacotortoise · 09/12/2023 03:41

Left the dog in the garden? If only it had legs and could have easily walked back to the house....

Show quote history

It is an old and arthritic dog, who hadn't apparently eaten since the day before. He could have taken ill, or hurt one of his legs, or even have escaped from the garden...

If only you had some commonsensence @Tacotortoise, then you wouldn't have embarrassed yourself by uttering such silly sentences.

Emotionalsupportviper · 09/12/2023 06:09

For crying out loud!

Go and seek the dog out in his hidey-hole and bring him in! If there's a sharp frost, and he is unwell, he could actually die.

I know he isn't your dog, but why would you leave him? DH and I have been out in a sodding blizzard looking for a cat that didn't come home at his usual time, and cats are much more self-sufficient and able to find themselves a warm place than dogs are!

Just seen he's back - but the principle stands. You don't just leave an animal - especially and old, ill animal - to suffer like that.

iloveeverykindofcat · 09/12/2023 06:28

If this is real, there's a lot things humans put in broth that can be toxic to dogs. Particularly if he's old/not in the peak of health. Onions, garlic, and salt for example. Stick to dog food in future.

megletthesecond · 09/12/2023 07:03

It's safe to say AI will never take over when it's this rubbish.

Zonder · 09/12/2023 07:23

supersop60 · 08/12/2023 22:12

Oh, laundry as well now?

Wouldn't you, given that the DC had d&V? No wonder the OP didn't have time to run after the dog for a few hours, dealing with the sick kids.

I hope your neighbour is very grateful, @XmasStag

AlwaysGinPlease · 09/12/2023 07:57

Justwanttotravel · 09/12/2023 00:41

FFS it’s a dog!

Your point? Do you think it should have been fed shit and left outside? Old or not. Even if this post is real it's a responsibility the family gave to the op who clearly isn't fit to even look after a goldfish. Just a dog my arse.

PuppyMonkey · 09/12/2023 08:05

Probably just me, but if I was looking after someone’s kids and they were sick three times, I’d be ringing the parents to tell them to come home.

blowfishh · 09/12/2023 08:11

OP you'll never win on here. Putting actual children before a dog is the ultimate sin.

supersop60 · 09/12/2023 08:21

Zonder · 09/12/2023 07:23

Wouldn't you, given that the DC had d&V? No wonder the OP didn't have time to run after the dog for a few hours, dealing with the sick kids.

I hope your neighbour is very grateful, @XmasStag

Show quote history

Of course I would. My comment was that there suddenly appeared another reason that the dog was left.

AlwaysGinPlease · 09/12/2023 08:33

blowfishh · 09/12/2023 08:11

OP you'll never win on here. Putting actual children before a dog is the ultimate sin.

🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱

Original poster
XmasStag · 09/12/2023 10:32

Itwasafterallallaboutme · 09/12/2023 05:16

I didn't know I was holding my breath until @XmasStag told us that DDog was back again inside, I gave a sort of mixture of a big sigh and a gasp when I read that. I know that like me, other readers were becoming more and more frustrated and stressed at the OP's dreadful choices, especially when she still wasn't going out immediately to search for the gorgeous Mr Canine.

However, having had time to relax a bit after that great news, I am now getting incensed with anger, because we have been told that the dog is old and arthritic, and yet she still left him for nearly four hours before even wondering about whether he should be back indoors by then, and she was even considering leaving the poor thing out all night! If she had done that I think that considering the poor DDog's age, health, and the weather tonight, anyone who found the DDog in the morning, would have found one that would never wake up again...

@XmasStag, did you not consider asking another neighbour or friend if they could pop over and look for the dog when it was not back after 15 minutes?
How old are the children OP, if old enough then surely the one who wasn't sick, could have gone into their own garden to look for their dear pet?
If neither you nor the children tell the parents the truth when they return home, then please at least have the decency to refuse any more child/pet sitting requests in the future.

Having said all of the above, I want to add that I am not at all convinced that this is not a made up tail tale from the OP, just like a PP was virtually suggesting when she pointed out the discrepancy between the OP still being inside the house at a certain time, and then 3 minutes later she was back indoors with the family's beloved pet, having gone down a long driveway to find the poor thing waiting by the gate for his dear parents to come home. Maybe the OP can explain to us this rather strange anomaly?

That's an absolute god damn lie you wrote here. I did not leave the dog 4 hours before wondering where he was. I did what I could under the circumstances and situation I was faced with. I went out for him at about 7.45 pm last night and before that I was not in any position to leave the house to look for him. Before that I went to the door several times to shout out his name and he usually comes when calling him but he didn't yesterday.

How dare you say that I left it 4 hours before wondering where the dog was and basically saying that I was neglecting the dog. I was not in a position to neglect the children for even 5 minutes in favour of the dog.

Keep getting angry. I did the best I could yesterday with what I was faced with. The parents went away for the weekend when all was well but a child took I'll not long after they left. I had to manage an afternoon of cleaning up sick and shit and then replenishing fluids into the child. I was not in a position to run around outside looking for the dog who was not responding to my calls.

OP posts:
Original poster
XmasStag · 09/12/2023 10:36

blowfishh · 09/12/2023 08:11

OP you'll never win on here. Putting actual children before a dog is the ultimate sin.

Thank you for backing me up. I was asked to babysit children and not a dog but the dog was tagged on but I don't mind because I get on well with animals. My priority was with the children yesterday and yesterday evening.

When I wrote the original post it was getting late and I was tired and not feeling well myself and I was contemplating leaving the dog out for the night but I was encouraged to look for him and I did do that when I got a free patch of time.

OP posts:
Tacotortoise · 09/12/2023 10:48

But it wasn't @Itwasafterallallaboutme. It wasn't injured or run away or too sick to make it back to the house. It could have gone back anytime so presumably was fine where it was.

Not leaving it out for the night was the right call. Blasting the OP for not having got it in sooner wasn't.