Redditor Stirs Up Drama After Dubbing Sister-In-Law's Service Dog ‘Useless’ And 'Poorly-Trained’

“If her service dog can't ignore children while working, then he's a sh*t service dog.”

Jesse

• Published in Interesting
• December 24, 2023

Our narrator (Original Poster) threw a birthday bash to celebrate her son’s eleventh, and boy, did things spiral into a carnival of commotion.

With nine energetic youngsters running around, pets, and even a daring rabbit escape, it was quite the scenario. Amidst the festivities, the spotlight was on the OP’s sister-in-law and her 18-month-old service dog.

To OP’s dismay, the canine was deeply engulfed in the pandemonium. All semblance of “work mode” was tossed aside as this charismatic furball darted around excitedly, paying his owner no mind.

Try as she may, OP’s sister-in-law just couldn’t control him. His excitement reached a crescendo, which led to their premature departure—OP’s son wasn’t too happy about it. 

Hoping to make amends, a "mini birthday" was arranged. It was designed to be a quieter celebration within the family circle. 

Even at this scaled-down affair, the service dog's antics persisted. OP’s sister-in-law even had a flare-up, but the dog completely ignored her.

Her frustration bubbled, and she finally asked OP’s kids to leave. He calmed down like clockwork with the two kids out of the way, but this was only short-lived.

OP finally lost it. They declared she didn’t want the dog in her house anymore if the sister-in-law couldn’t control him. When the sister-in-law cast the blame on OP's children, they sharply retorted that if a supposed service dog couldn’t ignore children while working, it was as good as useless. 

Her sister-in-law got upset, and she promptly left. Now, OP’s husband urges them to apologize, and though they feel a twinge of guilt, they aren’t budging from their stance.

Should OP just apologize?

Let’s dig into the details

A bit background

Unfortunately, OP’s SIL couldn’t control her service dog during the party. This certainly got OP concerned

OP made it clear that since SIL couldn’t control the dog, then it would be best to keep it away from her house

SIL got upset and left, as she felt unwanted. Apparently, OP’s husband is unhappy about how she handled the situation and has asked her to apologize to his sister

OP, however, is sticking to her guns

Here’s how the Reddit community reacted to the story:

“NTA…It sounds like she got a dog and someone trained it and is calling it a service dog.”

“If her dog is so freaked out around kids that it ignores her flare-ups, then he needs a LOT more training and should stay away from kids for a while.“

“She is aware the dog has issues with stimulation. How did she think a child's birthday party was a good place to take it?“

“NTA… There is a huge difference between an actual service dog and an emotional support animal.”

“Your SIL's dog is not a real service dog if it can not do its job in a high-energy situation.”

The Reddit jury's in, and the canine critique is unanimous—more training was definitely in order. They cited examples of model service dogs who were unflappable once their work vests came on.

The Consensus? 18 months was too tender for a service dog debut. The canine curriculum needed an encore, and everyone was nodding to the tune of more training.

Do you agree with this verdict? Let us know in the comments.

Jesse