mayhem, thanks!

I remembered "snap out of it!" while I was driving to work today!

Funny, poignant movie. Funny how those things hit you when you stop thinking about them.

I was applying it to this thread to mean "re-focus; remember what this is really about"

Hope the diaper, Miracle Cleaner and other ideas are helping tHE LW family situation!

pax

For as much ranting as you are doing about people "not reading the letter" maybe you ought to do the same thing.

The letter said they "confine the dog to a small part of the house." My guess is it's the basement.

I think this says it the best and the most suscintly, and with kindness:

>>The Social Contract

Well, at least the woman said she is conflicted about this situation, so I'll give her credit for that. Maybe she's not entirely evil. However, I find it really disturbing that the thought of having a dog euthanized just because it's old and has developed a weak bladder would even cross anyone's mind. Like others have said, a pet should be put down only if it's life has become a burden to it, not because it is a burden to someone else in the family. I believe that when you take on a pet, you have a social contract with it to provide a good life for it as long as that is possible.

I agree that the dog should be thoroughly checked out by a vet, and the woman should look into practical solutions for odor control. Beyond that, she should stop whining and just hold on for the few months this nearly 16-year-old dog has left.

-- Bonnie Nelle

This is one of the greatest articles I have ever read.

It was as smooth and as interesting as a streaming Brook.

About the Dog: The only thing that can live all year in

my home is my wonderful wife.

People don't own property;it owns them.

Dogs and Plants interfer with our Mobility.

That Dog has to die. Sorry; it's part of life.

I am laughing at this. Apparently hundreds (if not thousands) of salon.com readers lack simple reading comprehension skills. The people posting here that are calling the LW names and attacking her on a personal level are simply nuts. To all of you painting her to be an evil person, go back, READ her letter, read Cary's response, and shut up. You're all stupid.

jerrytree:

Thank you for visiting Earth. We hope you and your wife-thing have an enjoyable time here. Please make sure to check out our festive winter holiday displays and New Year's Eve celebrations.

Please make sure to tell all your friends on your home planet about your exciting adventures here. We hope you'll come back soon and visit our little blue world again.

Several years ago, a friend of mine had her dog put down at her husband's insistence after the dog began 'leaking' urine. As they face their inevitable divorce (not because of the dog . . .but because their inability to resolve their difference on the issue without one of them 'caving' was just an example of how they handled many issues) the dog's death comes up again and again as a source of terrible resentment. In face, I can honestly say that his insistence that the dog be euthanized is going to cost him prettily, . . .and I don't mean emotionally.

She's a new mother, and her husband is using the dog to disappear when she needs him to help with the kids. Instead of blaming the dog, blame the husband. He could clean up after the dog, and walk it at other times, or bundle up baby and walk them together. Instead of playing Mother Martyr, she needs to deal with lazy hubby. When the dog is gone, hubby's STILL going to abscond when there's work to do. As he does now.

As for the smell, there's too many cleaners out there that work for me not to roll my eyes. I see this as a symptom of the guy not doing his job as a dog owner.

By the way, being honest about one's evil doesn't make it less evil. No credit for admitting she's selfish here. She'd put that dog down in a minute if she could get away with it, and her vacillations (and mild annoyance) all point to that. Displacing her anger at her spouse on the dog is neither self-aware nor defensible. And she knows it- that's why she uses all of that defensive language. She's not treating the dog right, and all of her "I know I'm not treating it right" won't change that.

By the way, the dog was there before her. Just a thought.

Anyone who is married knows that give and take is the name of the game. This woman married a man with a dog, a dog he obviously cares for a great deal (you reading this, LW? Good). Even if she HATES dogs, she should accept this dog in the same spirit that her husband does, i.e., with love. LW, you're not perfect, none of us are, and you're being a selfish person here. Also, you are being cruel to that dog. Yep, despite how your probably think of yourself (kind, conscientious), you are guilty of cruelty to animals by confining that poor dog to a small part of your house. That dog had a life before you, you know, and that life centered around your husband, whom she loved and trusted. And you, the wicked stepmother, moved in and ruined it all.

Listen LW, that dog doesn't have much time left. Redeem yourself by showing her unconditional love. Bring her back into your house. Clean her pee when she has an accident; she's not acting out of spite, you know. Show her love, and your husband will take note. And you know what? If you're overwhelmed by the demands of your new child, ask your husband to pitch in 110% with the dog. He's your husband and he'll do it for you. Take it from an experienced husband: we all know the golden rule is, Happy Wife, Happy Life.