Man Demands Apology From A Kid Who Stole An Item From His Dog Memorial
He lost something very special to him and feels that should be acknowledged.
Claudia Luna Mtz / Shutterstock It’s natural for all families to deal with some level of drama. However, sometimes something happens that cannot be easily worked through.
This was true for one family where a little girl caused a rift between her dad and her uncle.
A man was mad after his niece stole part of his late dog’s memorial.
An anonymous man took to Reddit to ask if he was in the wrong after getting angry at his brother and 11-year-old niece when she took part of his special dog memorial.
“My husband and I… have a memorial shrine in our home [where] the urns and photos of both our fathers and dog are displayed. I kept a large paw-shaped locket wrapped around my dog’s urn. It was filled with a bit of his fur,” he explained.
One day, the man’s brother came over along with his wife and two children. After a night of burgers and hot dogs, the man realized that the locket was missing.
“A few days later my brother called at 9 p.m. and I mentioned that the locket was missing,” he wrote. “He casually mentions that he knows. His 11-year-old had ‘borrowed’ it.”
The man was livid. He demanded that his brother return the locket immediately. His brother refused because of how late it was, so he took matters into his own hands. “I’m angry, go to his house and bang on the door until he opens it and tossed the locket at me. It had been opened. My boy’s fur was missing from it,” he said.
To make matters worse, a neighbor saw the confrontation between the two brothers and called the police.
Despite all of this, his brother “still wants to get together for another BBQ.” The man said, “I told him that he and his daughter will need to apologize to me and my husband. My brother refused, saying she’s too young to understand that stealing is wrong and it would just traumatize and embarrass her.”
On the other hand, the man’s husband was not that bothered by what happened. He felt that his husband overreacted and “that it won’t change anything.” However, the man felt he was completely in the right. “I believe an apology is 100% needed,” he said, “as she stole and damaged something precious to me.”
“So Redditors, who sucks here?” he asked.
Reddit users were overwhelmingly on the man’s side.
People who commented on the post agreed with the man. Many were at a loss as to how an 11-year-old could be confused about the concept of stealing.
“Child is 11 years old, not 11 months old. Not sure how an 11-year-old cannot understand how stealing is wrong,” one person wrote. “In what universe does an 11-year-old not understand the concept that stealing is wrong?” asked another.
Others laid a fair amount of blame on the brother, saying it wasn’t really the child’s fault if she hadn’t been taught properly.
“Brother just doesn’t want to parent his kid,” said one Reddit user. Another said, “If she doesn’t know stealing is wrong then it’s your brother’s fault for not raising her right.”
One person even suggested trying to find the missing fur.
“Has anyone even raised the issue of the missing fur with the 11-year-old?” they asked. “It may still be found if a search is done. The 11-year-old should be made aware of the hurt they caused and be given an opportunity to apologize. I’m sorry for your loss.”
Children should be taught the consequences of their actions before the tween years.
The general consensus seems to be that, if parented properly and barring any developmental issues, children should understand that their actions have consequences between eight and 10 years of age. That means this dad's argument really doesn't hold any weight.
But on the flip side, the man's partner certainly has a point too. This was likely a little girl enamored with the locket and the fur inside, and it was not malicious in intent. Does it change anything? No.
Still, while this man acted rashly, his feelings were justified. He lost something incredibly special to him and deserves an apology from both his brother and niece because of that. Is it worth a family rift? Probably not. But it is worth a calm discussion, brother to brother.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer for YourTango who covers entertainment, news, and human interest topics.