Friend asking for dog food 'compensation'

[dogbiscuitsareforlife]

What do you make of this.

One of my school mum friends, (I'll call her Mary) has a dog and we often bump into each other out for dog walks and walk along together. Not super close, but chatty and friendly

Last week Mary told me she had been let down by a dog sitter for a holiday. She couldn't find anyone so I offered to help. Our dogs get on well and I'm used to having more than one, although at the moment only have one. She asked how much I'd charge but I said no bother just provide his usual food and treats, which she did. Her dogs food is a superior top end brand to the food I give mine.

All was great whilst we had him, but when feeding, the dogs seemed to favour each others food and swapped between bowls. I didn't think too much of it but did mention it to one of the other mums at the school gates in a jokey way, saying my dog obviously preferred the more expensive brand to the supermarket stuff I provided. Whereas her dog really liked the cheaper stuff.

Mary has obviously been told and today asked me if I fed my dog her dogs food. I was a bit taken aback but explained the above and of course I did give her dog its own food but sometimes dogs want what the other dog has.

She was very cold and told me to compensate her for any tins I gave my dog as she wasn't there to provide for my animal! I'm totally bemused, I saved her £100's in dog sitting fees and although I'm not now going to charge her she must see she is totally unfair.

Or am I wrong and should I buy a pack of 4 tins to give her. My DH says ignore but I don't want bad feeling.

I'd buy her the pack of four tins and tell her when I gave them to her how stupid she is to kick people who have done valuable favours, because you clearly won't be offering again.

Offer to recompense her for the tins when she's paid you £40 a night for dog boarding.

She can't prove anything, so I'd just ignore. Some people are so ungrateful!

Tell her you'll reimburse the dog food when she pays you the going rate for dog sitting for a holiday.

She’s being a total arse, but why on earth were you “joking” at the school gates about your dog eating the more expensive food?
She probably thinks you were taking the piss.

My friend just had my dog for me for eight nights. I was so grateful. I bought flowers, chocolate, wine, ticket for a show and a cheap coffee machine as she didn’t have one.
If her dog had eaten my dogs food I would have just laughed!!

🤔

Four tins? Did she shower you with presents and thanks for doing this? Did she offer to return the favour? Sounds like a CF.

Really not a big deal 🙄 It's quite funny when dogs prefer a more expensive brand 🤷‍♀️ I can't believe anyone would think twice about a harmless comment like that

Wow she's rude! How ungrateful is she. I would be so grateful if someone dog sat for me. I would be offering them money not asking for money back. She sounds like a terrible friend. Sorry she's been so terrible.

As long as her dog isn’t on a special diet (mine has to have low fat food so I would be irritated if you had let him eat another food) then she is being ridiculous.

how much do the 4 tins cost?

How much did your dog eat? Was it 4 tins worth? If it wasn’t very much I’d buy her one tin and say I estimate my dog ate half a tin’s worth so here you go. I’d do this just to emphasise how petty she’s being.

However much the dog ate I’d tell her how disappointed you are in her behaviour. How you see it as very ungrateful when you stepped in to help her out.

No way would I compensate her, but if you do I would put a note in with it, saying sorry you don’t like to way I looked your dog and unfortunately I won’t be offering to look after the dog again. I am a dog owner and wouldn’t be happy my dog wasn’t getting his food, not due to costs, more from a tummy 💩 issue. I hope she at least bought you something back from her holiday.

I actually can't believe the cheek of her for this when you looked after her pet for free - you saved her hundreds!

Mary has created the bad feeling not you. You did her a massive favour - her dog is happy and healthy and she would have spent the same amount of money on food whoever eats it. She sounds mad as a brush. Don't give her any food.

Give her the difference between 4 tins of your dogs food and 4 tins of her dogs food - after all if the dogs swapped then her dog was eating your dog food while yours was eating hers?
Explain that and then cut the ungrateful cow off, you do her a favour and she wants to quibble because your dog had a few mouthfuls of her dogs food? Nope, wouldn't be staying around to be treated like that!

yup, she needs 4 tins and a full dog sitting invoice. But you will need to see her frequently at the school gate so I would compensate and avoid!

I'd tell her to bugger off tbh.

I’d be telling her to fuck off and reminding her that you saved her hundreds of pounds by looking after her dog for her. Ungrateful cow!

No denying she's a massive CF but depends how much of an atmosphere at school you're willing to deal with as to whether you give her the tins? Also, be careful what you say from now on to the person who told the CF what you said - sounds like they've stirred the pot here.

Just tell her that it was only 2.5 tins, and give her precisely 2.5 tins and ask that she replaces YOUR 2.5 tins too.

mesaage : "Mary the dogs decided to swap not me.

If you want compensation deduct it from the dog sitting invoice I am about to send you."

HTH

I would hope she was joking but if not:

Give her half the difference (in cash) between the two brands preferably in small change. And explain her dog ate it's own food about half the time but also ate your dogs food about half the time, and tell her you have figured it out as accurately as you can but if she would like to do a recalculation with different assumptions about relative amounts eaten to feel free.

If she had told me her dog was on a special diet or needed particular care, of course I would have adhered to that. But she just handed me a bag of stuff with his food and some toys with not a word about his regime. I just went with what I do for my dog - feed twice a day, treat in the evening.

I only mentioned it to the other mums as someone asked how I was getting on with the dog so just told them in a casual haha way. No issue made of it at all. I also don't think the mum who told Mary was trying to make trouble.

I'd be a little wary of who your were joking with. Sounds like they've stirred a bit of trouble and incorrectly related the joke. I wouldn't trust them too much moving forward.

Your friend is also being massively unreasonable! You kindly looked after their dog for a long time! But you don't quite know what they were told and people can b v precious about their pets...