To have not shown my boss any sympathy about her dying dog?

[BupcakesandCunting]

I know. Sounds like a thread designed to cause a ruck, doesn't it?

Basically, it's this. My boss is a heartless, immature cow. She is , still lives with her parents and has no clue how the real world works. She is a massive hypochondriac, I mean seriously, she is ill EVERY time I go into work. She always has to leave early/go on extended lunch breaks for some reason. She is a frigging nightmare.

In January, I had to take time off to look after DS when he has chickenpox. Not much time, a few days, but she didn't like it. Then in February her dog died. She had three days off and I left her a card saying that I was thinking of her. Then in March I had to take another day off because I was ill. She was vile about it.

Now her other dog is dying. At work on friday, she kept saying that everytime she thought about her sick dog, she felt ill. Her entire family were taking the dog to the vets the next morning and she took the morning off to go with them. I think it's pathetic that she gets this upset over a dog yet has no empathy for sick children. I didn't show her any sympathy at all. I felt like chinning her tbh.

or a wuffle even - that too... though D[AlmostDeceased]Dog wasn't up to saying much at the time.

We can take emergency leave. I think I win most random at our company. "I need emergency leave because I've snapped the handle off the window, can't lock it, and can't leave it wide open"

When the dog died before, we were treated to a hideous video montage of the dog to the soundtrack of "You Got a Friend

Oh bloody help, I am a terrible giggler and the more I KNOW I can't laugh the more I want to. I wouldn't have survived 'winter, spring, summer or fall all you gotta to call and i'll come running to see you again.' Because the chances of Fido coming running anywhere, regardless of the season had receded into nothingness, with him being dead and all.

I had a client compare her dog dying to my daughter dying. It has made me disproportionately irritated with dog-lovers generally. Probably unfairly as most dog lovers are nice.

I didn't get any time off when my dog died. In fact, i tucked him into the trunk of the car and went to my hearing. After that, I took him to be cremated. It was so very mafia to think "here I am in court talking about this case, and all the while there's a dead body in my car. Huh."
Of course, after court i cried all the way there and all the way back to the office, but that was pretty much it.

chipmonkey.
Some people are insensitive arseholes - sorry to hear that you lost your daughter.

Mad people with pets struggle to empathise sometimes.
I worked with someone similar (not my boss thankfully) who was obsessed with her cat. Alas the creature shuffled off its catty mortal coil and said colleague was distraught. For weeks. Crying at work, on the phone to clients, to other colleagues. Took about a week off with stress.
Then another girl in the office had a late miscarriage and looney colleague said, and I quote, 'I know exactlly how you feel because my cat died last month.'
Don't think it helped to be honest even if she was trying to be kind! She then went on about her cat again for the best part of half an hour and cried again, whilst the girl who had had a miscarriage comforted HER.

I love my pets but some people are ott. The video montage was ott. And your boss should show more sympathy to her employees if she is going to have multiple days off for a pet. She sounds very self centred. And a bit mad.

Well I think you should be more supportive. Perhaps you could show your sympathy by suggesting songs for the new video montage? MN can help.

• You are the sunshine of my life
• Ben (ok, originally about a pet rat but lends itself to adaptation. Especially if you dub in the dog's real name at the appropriate times)
• I can't live if living is without you (you can only hope)
• Who let the dogs out (the whole office could mournfully do the barks)

I know people can get very attached to dogs as Mum is still heartbroken 2 months after having to have her dog put to sleep but I will never forgive my MIL for not meeting her newborn twin grandchildren for 3 months because she was too devasted after the death of her dog! and even then we had to book and pay for the hotel for her to come!
We have had nothing to do with her for 2 1/2 years now and its fab but it still irks me when I think about the early days of the twins lives

Can understand why you were off with her but think your issue is more the way she treated you than the fact she is upset about the dog

Don't let her watch old yeller.
Most distressing dog film ever.

I cried in therapy about my dog. It was the only time she got me to cry
I also made montage around the same time which has made other people cry

If you can see her status updates presumably she's a FB friend. Why would you be "friends" with someone you don't even like?

You don't get Facebook, do you? Thats what it's for !!!

Well I think it's mean to annihilate her on here - so it's been implied by OP that said boss is a sad, lonely singleton still living with her parents and with so little going on in her life she is OTT re her dog. Yes, let's poke fun at her hey?

She obvs lacks empathy. And I would go above her if she isn't being reasonable at work. But the essence of this thread is unpleasant.

When my last dog died, DH and I got smashed on vodka, fell and hurt myself on the living room floor and still went to work the next day.

Ps I looked like shit

You don't get Facebook, do you? Thats what it's for !!!

Having made it all the way through this thread almost without giggling that just did me in.. [ falls onto the floor and howls with laughter emotion

You shouldn't take on management responsibility if you have no sense of empathy. Caring about others is hugely important in that role.

How did she manage to be your boss? The person you've described would be lucky to get a job at McDonalds.

I dare say your boss and hear dead dog are bringing out the worst in you buppy.

Two dead dogs (well, one potentially dying and one dead) trumps chicken pox.

Try show some empathy, and you might be surprised....

My friend's cat died after she'd been trying to conceive a baby for over ten years. She was pretty devastated about the cat as it was her 'baby' (I usually hate that expression but in her case it was true). Her husband even more so, he had to take days off work after it. They really had emotionally invested a lot in that cat.

I don't think you should put up with bad management over your need to look after your child but I wouldn't assume it's motivated by a dislike of children.

Choices are to talk to her or go over her head. If you do the latter, it needs to be solely about your childcare needs.

Of course it's not acceptable to take three days off work because your dog has died, ffs. The woman should get a grip. (And I speak as a dog lover.)

Also, when your child has chicken pox, you really have no option but to take time off work. Who's going to look after them otherwise?

I agree with edam, yes you can be upset about a dog (or in my case a cat) dying, other than getting the pet treatment it shouldn't stop you working. I would have got short shrift with any of my employers if I had tried that. If someone was upset about a pet I work I would sympathise, but not to the extent that they took 3 days off. Cannot believe she got away with it.

Its the lack of empathy when you need to look after ill children / yourself that is annoying.

YANBU

YANBU! If she didn't sympathise with you, why should you with her???

This thread is proper funny :o

I adore my dog and will be devastated when he croaks it, but it will be a private grief. I won't expect a national day of mourning or anything.

So sorry that someone was that insensitive, chipmonkey. How wonderful that they can be that deluded, eh? Someone I know, when widowed, told a close relative that 'I thought I was sad when X died, but this is so much worse!'. X was close relative's 11 year old son. He walked away before he knocked her out. If she'd been talking about a pet I think he'd have gotten away with murder.

I can't bear to think what it will be like when I lose LittleDog. I don't think you can judge until you've loved a pet like that.

I was pretty immature when I was young too. I think you'd have judged me.