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AIBU?

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Original poster

To hope / expect for a contribution towards damaged items...?

119 replies

Scaramoose · 05/04/2018 18:31

I look after a friends dog, probably for a total of about 3-5 weeks a year with the off few days here and there and the occasional week if my friend goes on holiday.

He's a lovely dog, but she warned me that he can be destructive. The first times we had him we were very careful about leaving things he might chew lying around (eg shoes) but he has been fine. We have been having him stay for close on two years now and there have never been any incidents so we gradually became more laid back about leaving things out.

However... I came back in last week (we had him for 10 days) and the bugger had eaten my slipper and chewed a hole in my dogs bed. I was both shocked and pissed off as he has never shown any inkling to be like this since we have been having him, and it's not like it's a recent arrangement. The dog bed was reasonably old and worn but my slippers were £79 and about a year old (I try and buy things to last me as long as possible, and generally they do!)

My friend isn't unreasonable or thoughtless so hopefully this is all hypothetical but would you think it reasonable of me to want to have some kind of contribution towards getting some replacement slippers at the very least...? I know she warned me about the chewing but it's surely understandable that this appeared less of a risk the more he stayed with no issues - or is it my fault for not continuing to hide things away?

OP posts:
Original poster
Scaramoose · 05/04/2018 19:45

Or left particularly long

OP posts:
MissDuke · 05/04/2018 19:45

See what they say op, hopefully they will offer without you having to ask. I really think they should given how much you are saving them!

As an aside, yes I was horrified by the price of the slippers until I saw your last pair lasted 6 yrs. I wear mine every single day and they are always really scruffy within a year, though I wear them until they are really falling apart haha, but 6 yrs is awesome, lots of people get a £10ish pair each year so it is swings and roundabouts really! Nice not to be producing loads of waste!

MyLearnedFriend · 05/04/2018 19:46

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

taratill · 05/04/2018 19:46

buttercup he was probably anxious not to be with owners.

I think I would mention it too and see what the owner offers. I'm not sure you would be in your right to insist though seeing as you have been given fair warning.

Juells · 05/04/2018 19:47

Your were in charge of him so you are to blame.

A whack on the nose with a rolled up newspaper for you.

Original poster
Scaramoose · 05/04/2018 19:49

Juells consider me whacked!

OP posts:
Original poster
Scaramoose · 05/04/2018 19:51

MissDuke I agree totally about waste! Also, I’m often popping outside in them, work from home, and have flagstone floors so getting cheap ones would mean I go through them at a rate of knots

OP posts:
diddl · 05/04/2018 19:52

What is it about mahabis that makes them so expensive?

Idontdowindows · 05/04/2018 19:55

Is the dog not covered under a liability insurance? We always had one when we still had dogs (not rtft obvs).

SomeKnobend · 05/04/2018 19:57

80 fucking pounds? Are they made of gold?! If I was the owner I'd buy you a pair of replacement slippers, but I'd have assumed you were a normal £10ish type slipper wearing person, so you'd be very disappointed!

category12 · 05/04/2018 19:58

Seriously don't claim a pair of slippers even at £79 on your insurance Hmm.

OP, I don't think they should pay. It'd be a nice gesture, but dogface's predilections were known.

thatwouldbeanecumenicalmatter · 05/04/2018 20:00

Does your friend ever do you favours? Or even gives you a bunch of flowers/wine/chocs now and again as means of saying thanks?

pigsDOfly · 05/04/2018 20:02

Those are seriously ugly slippers, but you clearly love them OP. Why, if you knew the dog chews things would you leave what was, effectively, an £80 chew toy lying around?

NutElla5x · 05/04/2018 20:05

Blimey you spend more on your slippers than I do on my trainers! Saying that, if I were your friend and you watched my dog for free I would buy you new slippers without hesitation.They do some lovely ones for a fiver in Asda Grin

butterfly56 · 05/04/2018 20:12

Definitely not being unreasonable OP to expect at least a pair of slippers out of it, especially as you are saving them a fortune in kennel fees.

If your friend is reasonable as you say I am hoping she will get you a new pair without any quibble. Flowers

Judydreamsofhorses · 05/04/2018 20:14

OP, if it was my dog, I would offer immediately. My cat has a fondness for weeing on bath mats if they are left out by the side of the bath (she never wees anywhere else she’s not meant to) and if she was being cared for by someone else while we were away and did it, I would replace without question, even if I had pre-warned them. (She only likes fluffy ones though, the fussy madam.)

BoomBoomsCousin · 05/04/2018 20:15

You must be saving her a small fortune. If I were your friend I would be falling over myself to make things right (and it sounds like you kind of think she'll be doing this anyway).

I think you can ask if she's happy to give you something towards the footwear, though they weren't new so I wouldn't be asking for the full amount. If she had told you and you'd left out one pair of shoes a day for him to chew through I would think it's unreasonable to expect her to pay for it all, but one mistake in 6 - 10 weeks of care is a fair error rate!

Tawdrylocalbrouhaha · 05/04/2018 20:21

Did the dog say what the slipper tasted like? I would hope at that price it was absolutely delicious.

If I was the dog's owner I would offer to replace the slippers...but I would be quietly annoyed at your poor sense in leaving £80 slippers where a known shoe-eater could eat them.

Juells · 05/04/2018 20:28

But slippers live by the bed.

MerryDeath · 05/04/2018 20:30

i was disappointed by my mahabis. i should have returned them but they just found their way into my feet before i had a chance PEOPLE THEY ARE NOT WORTH THE MONEY.

y (and I) abbu for spending that much on shitty slippers in the first place.

BackforGood · 05/04/2018 20:30

I don't think you can ask either. It's the same as when you have someone else's child round - if you offer to look after them, they are your responsibility while you are looking after them.

£79 slippers Shock

Joins the line of people who can't quite grasp that concept.

strayducks18 · 05/04/2018 20:35

I'm only really here to defend your choice in slippers. I paid about £65 for a pair from celtic and co and they lasted me years. Funnily enough I did give them to my puppy this year as they were on their last legs and he thoroughly enjoyed chewing on 5 years of foot stink!

You are saving your friend a fortune looking after her dog I would hope she offers to replace them or I might not be so available to help in the future if i were you

NutElla5x · 05/04/2018 20:41

PEOPLE THEY ARE NOT WORTH THE MONEY. Thanks for the warning but I don't think any of us were rushing off to buy some anyway.

Juells · 05/04/2018 20:44

hahahaha too true

Rudgie47 · 05/04/2018 20:44

I think you need to go to the Doctors to have your head looking at TBH, who in their right mind would pay £80 for a pair of slippers!. Even Elton John wouldnt pay that much.

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