Weekend dog sitter walks her friend's "under-exercised" dog significantly more than they do, leading to vet costs and drama, then acts like she's the victim: ' [He] suddenly accused me of not wanting to pay the vet bill.'

Author image for Mariel Ruvinsky
Mariel Ruvinsky • Writer and Editor
Jun 9, 2025 11:00 AM EDT

Look, we have sympathy for dog sitters. We really do. Because we know that these guys, despite generally doing their best, have to face some less-than-nice situations. We know that dogs sitters have to deal with unresponsive owners, sometimes in situations when they are very needed. We know that sometimes, dog sitters don't get paid as much as they deserve after having done the job, because of owners claiming all kinds of things that may be true or not. 

Dog sitters deal with a lot, and they do their best, but still… understanding and sympathetic as we are, some lines cannot be crossed with our pets. We trust our dog sitters to follow the instructions that we give them, because every dog has different needs. Now, mistakes happen, but that wasn't the case here. Here, this person made a choice to do something that they knew was different behind the dog owners' backs. And that… that is not okay. 

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  • 01

    "[Am I wrong] for walking my friends’ under-exercised dog more than they usually do – which led to vet costs and now drama?"

    "[I walked] their dog significantly more than they do, trying to do the right thing"
    via Unsplash / Delphine Beausoleil - dbeausoleil

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • Okay, look, we understand wanting to do the right thing. We really do. We want to do what is best for every single animal that we ever seen in our lives. But we also understand that if it's not our pet, then it's not our place to make decisions about it. 

  • 02
    So... this one's been sitting heavy on me, and I'd love to get an outside perspective. My friends (let's call them J and P) adopted a 2-year-old rescue dog (I'll call him B) about three months ago.
    via losnoodlos
  • 03
    Before that, B had lived in a basement with little to no stimulation. He's a super sweet dog but noticeably under-exercised: they walk him about 1-2 km per day and he's alone for 6- 8 hours daily. He often seems restless, whiny, overly excited around other dogs classic signs of under- stimulation, IMO.
    via losnoodlos
  • 04
    I took care of B for a weekend while they were away. During that time, I gave him more attention and longer walks one day, we covered about 10 km total (spread out through the day). He was noticeably calmer, more relaxed, and just generally seemed happier. I honestly felt like he needed that.
    via losnoodlos
  • 05
    - When I returned him, he was fine. The next day, they messaged me saying he had "hip pain" and that they had to call a vet. I felt awful – but also a bit confused, because he hadn't shown any signs of discomfort while with me, and I did pace things gently. The vet said there was nothing structurally wrong, maybe a strain or muscle soreness, and gave them painkillers.
    via losnoodlos
  • 06
    We later had a conversation where I calmly expressed that I'd step back from walking or looking after B to avoid overstepping again, and to respect their way of handling things - even though I still strongly feel that the dog needs more stimulation. The talk started off calm but escalated when J suddenly accused me of not wanting to pay the vet bill.
    via losnoodlos
  • 07
    That threw me off because - at that point - the bill hadn't even come up in our conversation. It genuinely hadn't been discussed yet, not because I was avoiding it, but because we hadn't gotten there. I would have gladly offered to help if it had been addressed normally.
    via losnoodlos
  • 08
    After that I sent a message offering to pay part of the bill, asking for the receipt, and reiterating that the friendship matters to me. P later replied, saying emotions were high, J's under a lot of stress, and that J needs time.
    via losnoodlos
  • 09
    I get that life is hard, and I don't want to be insensitive. But I still feel a bit hurt and misunderstood. I never meant to overstep. I really cared about B, and just wanted to give him what I thought he was missing.
    via losnoodlos
  • 10
    So... AITA for walking their dog significantly more than they do, trying to do the right thing - and now stepping back after being accused of not wanting to pay, even though we hadn't gotten to that part of the conversation yet?
    via losnoodlos
  • 11
    Cheezburger Image 10515079936
    via Unsplash / Humphrey M

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • You knew that what you were doing was not what was usually done. You could have asked. Had you asked for an explanation for why their dog is “under-exercised”, then they probably would have told you, but you decided to do what you “thought was right” for someone else's dog without telling them anything. 

  • 12
    Kitchu22 As someone in rescue/rehab, YTA if you knew the dog's current exercise routine and deliberately exceeded it by such a significant amount because you wanted to make some kind of point that you think you know better than their owners. “I never meant to overstep” girl, be so for real, your actions were very deliberately an overstep.
    via Kitchu22
  • 13
    Just because a dog is tired doesn't mean that they are enriched or happy, and you ultimately caused them an injury. You could have easily introduced some training, sniffy games, or foraging opportunities if you felt that they needed more - instead you took a dog used to 1-2kms of walks max and took them on 10kms in one day, that's super irresponsible, and I am glad you will not be providing care for this poor dog in future.
    via Kitchu22
  • 14
    Cheezburger Image 10515142400
    via Unsplash / Tatiana Rodriguez - tata186

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 15
    Hari_om_tat_sat My husband's colleague offered to dog- sit while we went to visit my family abroad for 3 weeks. We were happy to hear that he took our dog out on his nightly runs. What he didn't tell us was that he was training for a marathon. When we got our dog back, he was limping. Our poor pup was in distress. We took him to the vet & discovered that he had torn his ACL in both hind legs. It cost $3,000 for surgery on one leg and a 10 week recovery period.
    via Hari_om_tat_sat
  • 16
    YTA for thinking you know their dog's needs better than your friends. You abruptly increased the dog's exercise 5- fold over a single weekend, no building up to it, no preparation. Your carelessness caused the dog pain and possible injury.
    via Hari_om_tat_sat
  • 17
    Thank goodness it was only for a weekend so the injury didn't get aggravated and was able to heal with rest and a mild intervention — not like my poor dog who was over-exercised to the point of tearing his ligaments. Then to top it off, you didn't immediately offer to split the vet bill once you heard that your friends had to take him there. And you still think you're right!
    via Hari_om_tat_sat
  • 18
    Cheezburger Image 10515079424
    via Unsplash / Julia Vivcharyk

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 19
    Ariask YTA 10KM is a HUGE difference from what the dog is used to. Dogs are really good at keeping up because they are easily excited and loyal. They don't want to be left behind. They often ignore pain because they are having a good time.
    via AriasK
  • 20
    Dog or human, anyone who suddenly does a walk or run of that distance without building up their endurance will injure themselves. The injuries often show up a day or two later. Rule of thumb is to add on 10% distance per week to build up without injury.
    via AriasK
  • 21
    Jubilantly YTA animals as with people need a slow increase when exercising more if they've had reduced levels of physical activity. 1 - 2 km to 10 km is 5 - 10x increase. Pup may not have had the muscle strength for it. 3 months of any new relationship including pets is still a learning period for all parties.
    via Jubilantly
  • 22
    As for J's response, your actions (without their input on the change regardless of good intentions) caused harm to the newest member of their family.
    via Jubilantly

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