Mom Goes Viral For Wanting To Rehome Dog After Baby Arrives

Steph Bazzle

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hplovecraft.mail.ru/Depositphotos.com
hplovecraft.mail.ru/Depositphotos.com

We all know adoption is a lifetime commitment, and rehoming or surrendering a pet because it becomes inconvenient is harshly judged for good reason. Even rehoming because of allergies or housing struggles can earn a sharp side-eye. On the other hand, pets are not typically better off in a home where they’re unwanted or part of a problem, and feeling forced to choose between a pet and your child’s well-being is not on anybody’s bucket list.

In this case, one mom has gone wildly viral for admitting that she genuinely wants the pets out, even though she’s not rehoming them. Her Reddit post is drawing mixed reactions. Other moms are empathizing, though, perhaps even more so because the poster, who goes by the handle Kmartomuss, has mentioned that the dog was her boyfriend’s pet and remains untrained and undisciplined.

Check out her post below and judge for yourself (you may have to click “read more” to see the full text).

Kmartomuss says that the dog was getting on her nerves even during her pregnancy. She says her boyfriend “wasn’t responsible when he first got” the pup, and while she doesn’t quite say if or how the boyfriend is doing better now, she does share that the animal is still not disciplined and has no “indoor training”— traits that certainly don’t make the dog a good housemate for a newborn.

Some commenters suggest that the boyfriend might be more of a problem than the dog and that if he’s the sort of person who never bothered to train his dog, he’s probably also not doing much to help a new mom handle the baby, the pets, and the house now.

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Others suggest hormones may play a role and that when Kmartomuss isn’t newly postpartum, she may feel better about things. Some have even shared that they went through similar postpartum situations with a partner’s untrained pet and that the rage at the animal dissipated (at least somewhat) as the baby got older.

Some Redditors have even discussed postpartum rage and warned that even if the animals are removed, the new mom could find that her rage transfers to someone else. She could find herself lashing out at others unfairly (though the poster says she doesn’t abuse the animals or lash out at them; she just wants them away from her).

Postpartum rage, according to the Cleveland Clinic, is a serious condition that usually hits within the first year after giving birth. It’s related to, but not the same as, postpartum depression, and overall, about 1 in 4 moms will suffer some postpartum mood disorder. It’s treatable with counseling and medications, and for most moms, it goes away within the first year, although some may find it lingers beyond that point.

Kmartomuss is also frustrated with her cat, who she says has “become a monster” since the baby was born. She doesn’t share any specifics about the cat’s behavior, though she says she now sees both pets as “nasty, dirty, monsters who destroy my home and my son’s things.”

She says that the pets won’t be going anywhere because her boyfriend isn’t interested in letting them go — she credits him with being a “better person,” though, again, she hasn’t said if he’s stepping up to get training for the dog or to handle messes and damages done by the pets.

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According to a survey by ManyPets, Kmartomuss is far from alone in this. Their survey found that more than a third of new moms reported their dog being “more clingy.” The same number reported the pooch being “more jealous” when the baby arrived. Around 80% of parents who felt that the pet compromised their baby’s safety had either rehomed the animal or were considering doing so.

Like the commenters on the Reddit post, they do have some suggestions for parents who are in the same boat but unwilling or unready to rehome their once-beloved pet. These include therapy or counseling (for humans) and obedience training or doggy daycare (for pets).

It seems that pet ownership can become a joy again for those who make it through the hard part, especially if they are able and willing to do the hard work of adjustment.