Susan has a dog and her husband has a cat who loves to torture her dog. Recently they fought and the dog bit the cat, so now her husband has told her she needs to get rid of the dog. But Susan thinks it may be time to get rid of the husband instead. What would you do if your spouse told you they wanted you to get rid of the dog? Is that even an option?
Jonathan:We’re doing panic button today and on the line we have Susan. Hey, Susan. How are you doing?
Susan: Doing fantastic.
Jonathan: So you have a problem where you and your husband are fighting like cats and dogs.
Susan: Literally.
Jonathan: Literally. So what happened?
Susan: Well, I’m a dog person, definitely. And I have this dog, and he’s just the best. He’s a cross between a lab and a great Dane. But he is just so affectionate. And now the problem is my husband has a cat and he’s never been a fan of my dog because of his cat.
Jonathan: Your husband’s never been a fan of the dog or the cat has never been a fan.
Susan: Neither of them has been a fan. I think it’s transference. But anyway, the cat is always picking at the dog. And it’s always when my husband’s not looking, the cat is picking at my dog. And I go, Did you see that? He goes, no, you’re imagining it. I know that cat is teasing the dog constantly.
Jonathan: Yeah.
Susan: The other day I was out of the house, and this is what I came home to. I said, Where’s the dog? He goes in the basement, and I go, Why? Well, because he bit my cat and there was blood. And we’ve got to get rid of the dog. And my poor dog doesn’t know why it’s being punished. It was just protecting itself.
Jonathan: Really?
Susan: Yeah. And now with my husband, it’s become an issue. This has really become an issue. Every day. The dog’s got to go. The dog’s got to go. And, you know, I just turned to him and I said, Hey, dogs are for people persons. What kind of a man has to have a cat? Anyone know what kind of man?
Jonathan: What? You said this to him. And what did he say?
Susan: Well, you know, it’s the dog or me. And I said, well, goodbye.
Jonathan: Wow. You don’t think that was an overreaction?
Susan: No. Because I had the dog first. He got the cat second. That’s on him.
Jonathan: And so he brought the cat. Is he a dog person at all? Like he would never own a dog?
Susan: No, he’s not a dog person at all. I do everything for the dog. Forget it. Okay. The vet, the walks, everything. That’s me.
Jonathan: I think the question is this. Is it okay to choose a dog over your husband? I guess this is the question. And you’re willing to make that choice?
Susan: Well, my feeling is, if that’s his attitude, what’s the next thing it’s going to be? What’s the next ultimatum?
Jonathan: Okay, so what are you guys, like, sleeping in separate rooms now? Did you kick him out of the house?
Susan: We just don’t talk to each other. Pretty much.
Jonathan: Okay. All right. But he’s still insisting you get rid of the dog.
Susan: Oh, yeah. The dog’s got to go.
