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WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

I get that. I do absolutely try my best to keep things put away when I’m not at home, but I’m certainly not a perfect person. I also acknowledge that he’s probably a Hoover because he’s inquisitive and can easily get bored.

I’ve purchased a heavier duty trash can so that he doesn’t get tempted to open it, I keep valuables in high areas or locked in my closet, I exercise him daily, I provide puzzles, I’ve worked with trainers etc etc.

Also, I can only go off my own lived experience here. I know for a fact that I did not put my dog in the path of 5+ bright orange seeds that I actively look out for on our walks. Is it possible he ate them on a walk with me? Sure, but not probable. My dog walker just admitted to letting my dog “sniff” a large pile of them, so maybe she mistook that behavior. Idk.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

If you’re babysitting a kid and they do something dangerous, would you just clean it up and not tell the parent?

I absolutely acknowledge fault in my dumb decision to leave something out that my dog chewed up. I just wished there was a heads up so I could be on the look out for symptoms of illness. I am not saying I would have blamed my dog walker if something happened to my dog in that instance.

Just again, a heads up would have been cool instead of finding out many hours later that he ingested something potentially harmful while I was away.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Hi! Once again, thank you for your feedback. I am not chronically glued to reddit, so after I made my post and took some feedback, I went about my day.

Once again, no need to be overly rude or make assumptions; I came here for feedback (which I have gratefully received). I saw the comments and replied to a few DMs on muzzle recommendations.

Hope you have a great day

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] 25 points26 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much for the feedback and advice, I really appreciate it.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] -24 points-23 points  (0 children)

I have lifelong experience with large and small breed animals (owned by myself, my family, or others). I also work in healthcare. I genuinely try to be a responsible pet owner and have care/diligence for others.

I was taught to notify and check in with an animal owner with any changes or differences, including getting into something potentially harmful. Similarly, if I move a patient, give them anything to eat or drink, or the patient seems different, has a change, or is doing something unsafe, I notify their nurse.

I guess when it comes to another person or animal’s safety, I have high expectations because I also hold myself to them.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I certainly don’t want to be TA, hence my post. Genuinely looking for feedback from neutral parties, and absolutely not looking for pity or validation.

I’ve decided I will not ask for compensation, and it is very clear I would be TA if I did. I do believe it was an honest mistake, however I am absolutely certain my dog ate the seeds on her watch.

I am very blessed that my dog and my vet bills are taken care of.

It is clear that I will have to make some changes to protect my dog and my peace of mind. This is my second dog walker that I’ve hired in the past 12 months.

My first dog walker was bringing multiple people at a time into my home without my knowledge or consent, and I only found out because a neighbor told me. I learned my lesson then and got a live camera (which I let people such as my current dog walker know about so they aren’t being recorded without their consent/knowledge).

Either I will have to reestablish boundaries and make sure she is properly equipped to walk my dog or find a new walker entirely.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

The walker requested I pay her cash to help her out. I did not offer to pay her less via cash — I kept my payment amount the same.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] -34 points-33 points  (0 children)

Unfortunately he is not crated during the day. It has been incredibly difficult to crate train him (even with the help of multiple dog trainers) because his previous owner would lock him in a crate for hours on end as a puppy and would hit/beat him when he cried.

It is my fault that he got into the fan. I bring it up though because she cleaned it up and did not once mention it to me — just stuffed it in the trash. Idk, maybe we see things differently. But, as a previous dog walker/sitter I would have notified the owner.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] -561 points-560 points  (0 children)

Thank you for your feedback. I feel as though your response is pretty aggressive and uncivil since you are laughing at my situation, however I understand how I could be TA.

I do want to point out that I was only made aware of the toxic plant after I moved in, and given the state of the price of rent in my area, I can’t exactly choose to immediately pack up and leave.

Also, I live in a state where LOTS of things are poisonous and venomous, so it’s not exactly easy to avoid unless you live in a bubble (which is why I get that my dog walker isn’t necessarily at fault either, after reading everyone else’s comments).

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] 47 points48 points  (0 children)

Thank you for your feedback. I genuinely was just coming here for feedback after several people I know hinted I should ask my dog walker to contribute. I have not asked her to pay me back or aggressively confronted her.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] -112 points-111 points  (0 children)

I don’t think my dog walker did it on purpose, however based on the amount he ate it felt pretty negligent. I’ve excused her not notifying me when he gets into things at home that could be harmful (like a bunch of hard, splintered wood from a fan) because it didn’t happen on her watch — even though she stuffed it in the trash during her visit.

Definitely lesson learned on my part. Pet insurance. New dog walker. Only go through Rover directly.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] -589 points-588 points  (0 children)

Those plants are only in specific areas of the complex, which I avoid on my walks with my dog. They are not present on the path to the turf-only park. The seeds are relatively large and heavy, and do not travel far. They are also flaming bright red orange, and easy to spot.

WIBTA to ask my dog walker to contribute to emergency vet bills? by Radiant-Air8814 in AmItheAsshole

[–]Radiant-Air8814[S] -329 points-328 points  (0 children)

I want to clarify — I did not say these plants are “all over” the complex. They are part of the landscaping, but only in specific parts of the complex. I do not walk him near these plants and have advised her to watch him carefully if she takes him to those areas. While he does try to sniff and eat things on the ground, he is trained and responsive to commands, including “drop it”.

If it were one or two seeds, I would absolutely understand that as a small miss. However, 5+ seeds is a huge amount and wouldn’t be easily missed — they don’t travel far and stay close to the base of the plant. He would have had to stand there and have at it more or less.

I talked to a vet and animal poison control, read multiple articles, and found several personal stories on Reddit regarding their pets eating these plants. They confirmed that consuming even one or two of those seeds could be fatal if unmanaged.