to think you shouldn't call a baby a "bitch"

[minnietheminx007]

Just had a rather unsettling experience at a local village pub, was in there with dp and dd and another couple came in with another couple and their baby who was about 6 months. The mother was trying to spoon feed her baby and the baby spat some of the food out which hit her top, she then called her a cow which I thought was awful, I couldn't imagine myself ever calling my own dd something like that. She was then carrying on feeding her calling her "a little bitch" and "a little sod". The dad then got up and gripped onto the childs head so the mother could ram food in there...the whole thing has really upset me, if they think that its ok to act like this in public what on earth goes on at home.
Surely its not BU to think mothers shouldn't use that sort of language towards a baby.

That must have been very upsetting, not least for the poor baby. Obviously YANBU

YANBU, Before i read about the father i was going to say maybe she suffers from PND but he wouldnt.

That is so that I wish I hadn't read it. You know YANBU. Awful, awful, awful. How did you restrain yourself from saying something to them? I would have found it hard not to commit violence. I actually feel physically sick...

yanbu. unfortunately some people use that type of language around and aimed at their dc and are just so used to doing so.

This is absolutely dreadful. To call a little baby, never mind your grown child, such names is beyond awful. if i'd been there i too would have been deeply disturbed by that.

I don't blame you for not getting involved with these delightful people, but I would have been tempted to phone the police. I wouldn't have done, because the police would have done naff all about it. But they sound like scum, frankly.

at language and the head holdoing so she could ram it in
thats upsetting

Didnt the lovely K Katona refer to her daughter as cow on national tv?

Her being voted mother of the year at least twice as well!

What did you honestly expect the answers to be? "Yes - YABVVU to object to someone treating a baby roughly and her calling her a bitch"?!

Did you say or do anything or were you waiting for the posters on an internet forum to confirm that this was VVU?

I am more of a lurker and haven't really posted much before so quite ready to be flamed, called a troll etc. However, this post has made me very, very angry. I think that it is very, very unreasonable that the only action that you took regarding this was to post on the internet ostensibly to check if your outrage was misplaced or not and whether the rest of the public usually refer to their children as "bitches", treat them roughly etc and you were just being a bit PFB to think this was totally unacceptable

That's a bit harsh, isn't it bunny. I don't think the op really thought she was being unreasonable. I think she was trying to debrief after being quite upset about something she'd seen. So maybe she should have posted elsewhere, but tbh I think most people would have been too shocked to know quite what to do or say in such a situation.

I don't actually think it is harsh. I think the parents sound horrible and I don't think that OP should have confronted them. However, it would have quite easy to wait and see what car the parents went to, take the registration number and call the police to let them liaise with social services and sort it out.

This is quite clearly child abuse so I do think it is VVU not to do anything at all; particulary in respect of such a small child who has no voice of their own and is so reliant on their parents.

Bunny, I was quite shocked to see your post, I didnt know what to do in this situation, I was quite shocked and what could I have done, marched up to them and told them what I thought which wouldn't have achieved anything, grabbed the baby off them? I see things on a daily basis that I dont agree with but there is a fine line between meddling and getting involved where necessary. I can see looking back now that something should have been done but what? If i had called social services and told them what I had seen do you really think anything would happen? Maybe I should call the pub and get cctv from the carpark?

It's not 'clearly child abuse'. Sorry, but based on a tiny view of a family's life you can't assume that the child is being abused. This was nasty and wrong (the forcefeeding) but honestly - do you really think that the police would have done anything? Even if you had names and addresses social services would not act on the information she had.

This was a situation where you could have spoken up or not, knowing that speaking up would probably achieve nothing.

Well said kat.

My friend is friends with a travelling family and they frequently call their little a girl a little bitch ,however it is done in a saccarine sweet 'ooo whos a little bitch then ' type of way as opposed to an angry or aggressive way .It is just a word ,granted one that many use as offensive ,and i am by no means condoning what the op saw ,just that there are those who use words in everyday use without meaning it to be derogatory. at head holding though .

I think the police would have reported it to social services. They may very well have done nothing. They may have done something; particularly if the child or the family was known to them.

I'm sorry you are shocked at my post - I was very shocked at yours. However, you did invite comments as to whether this was unreasonable or not and I have said that I think it was and so were you (in)actions.

You obviously think you did the right thing so we will have to agree to disagree.

Why of why are such 'things' allowed to reproduce, is beyond me. [disgusted]