Woman Refusing To Babysit for Sister After What She Did to Her Dog Backed
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A heated family dispute has sparked a debate online after a woman refused to babysit her sister's "baby miracle" because of what she did to her dog.
The dog owner explains in a Reddit post shared in April under the username u/No-Sprinkles7135 that the tension between her and her sister began when her sister's attitude toward her 5-year-old golden retriever, Benny, changed after having a baby.
"So my sister (32F) had a baby last year after years of struggling with infertility. We were all happy for her. She called him her miracle baby and honestly I didn't mind the attention he got until things got weird," she says in the post.
Suddenly the new-mom started claiming that Benny, who the poster describes as the sweetest dog, as is typical of golden retrievers, made the newborn baby uncomfortable with his presence.
Initially, she was asking to keep him outside, despite it being cold in the middle of the winter, but then things took a different turn.
"Next time I saw her she told me straight-up she didn't want Benny around her son because he's a dog. I said okay whatever and stopped bringing him. But I could tell something shifted," the post continues.
A stock image shows a yellow Labrador retriever smelling a baby's foot as his mom holds him up.
A stock image shows a yellow Labrador retriever smelling a baby's foot as his mom holds him up.
getty images
But the breaking point was when the poster allowed her sister to stay in her home while she was out of town for the weekend, only to find on her return a scared Benny hiding under the bed, visibly shaken.
After investigating, she found out that her sister had locked him in the laundry room alone for two straight days without water or food, in his own home, claiming that his presence had made the baby nervous.
Furious, the poster banned her sister from her home. However, a few weeks later, the new-mom reached back out to her as if nothing had happened, asking her to babysit her son for free.
"I said no. She flipped and called me bitter and selfish, and said I clearly don't understand what it means to love family unconditionally. My mom got involved and said I'm being cruel when I could be helping," she said.
"But this isn't just about a dog. It's about how she treated something I love without remorse and now expects me to drop everything and help her like nothing happened."
Viviana McGovern, a licensed marriage and family therapist and CEO of Full Vida Therapy, told Newsweek that this rift isn't just about the dog or babysitting. It's much more likely about a breach of trust and emotional injury.
"When someone experiences a violation of their boundaries—especially in their own home and involving a beloved pet—it creates a rupture that can't simply be smoothed over with a 'you should help because we're family' mindset," she said.
"The fact that the dog was confined without food or water, and without the owner's consent, isn't a minor misstep—it's understandably distressing. The emotional weight of that experience needs to be acknowledged before any type of healing or reconciliation can begin."
According to Patricia Bathurst, licensed marriage and family therapist at The Oasis Recovery, a direct conversation between the two involved in this conflict is important.
"Both sisters should sit down and talk about how they feel (with the help of a therapist). A therapist can help them work through these issues. In the meantime, family members should resist taking sides. This only adds difficulty to the situation," Bathurst said.
Bathurst says that it may be possible to repair this relationship, but only if the sisters are open to talking with each other and working things through.
The video quickly went viral on social media and it has so far received over 29,000 upvotes and 3,500 comments on the platform.
One user, Chibeau, commented: "NTA [Not the A*******! What she did to Benny is horrible! You trusted her with him and she locked him and didn't even give him food or water! Also, she has no right to claim your time anyway."
GrubbyTapir said: "You're not being cruel you're protecting your dog from someone who clearly doesn't care about him."
Writing_D3mon added: "Don't even need to read the post, you're not obligated to baby sit for anyone. ETA: holy c***, read the post and my initial response wasn't severe enough. You're not only not obligated you shouldn't ever help her again for any reason, her or your mom."
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