Woman Causes Uproar After Forcing Friend’s Service Dog to Stay Outside

In life, it doesn't often take long to develop an understanding that the people we meet will have different values and lifestyles. And when those values clash, it's typically fairly easy to understand where each side of a debate is coming from.

But sometimes, one person will feel justified in their position yet receive a great deal of backlash from the people in their lives that throws that confidence into doubt. So for those people, it can be useful to seek some outside perspectives to find out who was really in the right. And from the sounds of it, one woman is now glad she did exactly that.

An epileptic woman with a service dog felt conflicted

In a post asking for advice on Reddit, a 24-year-old woman established that she has epilepsy.

service dog sticking tongue out on street
Ralph (Ravi) Kayden/unsplash
Ralph (Ravi) Kayden/unsplash

And her case is severe enough that she has a service dog to help her deal with her seizures.

ADVERTISEMENT

Her dog helps detect seizures

ADVERTISEMENT

As the woman explained, service dogs trained for epilepsy are able to detect seizures before the person they're helping is aware of them.

couple walking with service dog
Brian Wangenheim/unsplash
Brian Wangenheim/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

The dog then alerts this person so they have time to get to a safe place and sit or lie down to better experience them.

ADVERTISEMENT

Dedicated to their work

ADVERTISEMENT

The woman also said that if she ignores this alert, her dog will tug her sleeve and try to pull her to the ground itself.

ADVERTISEMENT
A service dog named Chewbacca is seen wearing
Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images
Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

And once that seizure does happen, the dog stays with her and doesn't let her get up until it's safe to do so. Ultimately, the service dog's job is to minimize the chances of her getting hurt during a seizure.

ADVERTISEMENT

A lifelong partnership

ADVERTISEMENT

Since the woman was diagnosed as a child, she's been most of her life accompanied by a service dog.

ADVERTISEMENT
jon-cartagena-83HvryByFJk-unsplash
Unsplash/Jon Cartagena
Unsplash/Jon Cartagena
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

At this point in her life, one of those dogs has already had to retire once it became too old.

ADVERTISEMENT

Life with Bailey

ADVERTISEMENT

Naturally, this means the woman had to get another dog, and she's been working with one named Bailey for the last four years.

ADVERTISEMENT
Woman cuddling large white dog on veterinarian table
Getty Images/Unsplash+
Getty Images/Unsplash+
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

In her words, "She is the bestest girl around."

ADVERTISEMENT

That one friend

ADVERTISEMENT

The woman often meets up with her core friend group and given the nature of her medical issue, Bailey is always with her.

ADVERTISEMENT
A woman plays with
Philippe Huguen/AFP via Getty Images
Philippe Huguen/AFP via Getty Images
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

However, one of those friends (who she code-named Anna) has a history of making passive-aggressive comments about Bailey for reasons the woman can't put her finger on.

ADVERTISEMENT

Anna drops some strange hints

ADVERTISEMENT

Apparently, Anna was in the habit of telling the woman that dogs shouldn't come to restaurants and that she was inconveniencing people by bringing Bailey everywhere.

ADVERTISEMENT
Woman staring intensely
Andrey Zvyagintsev/unsplash
Andrey Zvyagintsev/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

As the woman put it, "She doesn't get that I legitimately need her for my own safety. It’s not just for show."

ADVERTISEMENT

Different kinds of seizures

ADVERTISEMENT

The woman explained that seizures are an everyday occurrence for her. Sometimes, they're relatively small "petit mal" seizures that she described as looking like she's simply zoning out.

ADVERTISEMENT
woman staring with half-lidded eyes
Omid Armin/unsplash
Omid Armin/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

As she wrote, "Quite often, people who don't know me wouldn’t even connect this."

ADVERTISEMENT

A much bigger deal

ADVERTISEMENT

Contrasting with these are her "big" seizures that cause her to lose consciousness entirely.

ADVERTISEMENT
Zoe Kazan in The Exploding Girl
Soandbrad/Oscilloscope via MovieStillsDb
Soandbrad/Oscilloscope via MovieStillsDb
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Unfortunately, it's also not unusual for these to happen a couple of times a day, so it's imperative for her that these episodes pass as smoothly as possible.

ADVERTISEMENT

A game night without any fun

ADVERTISEMENT

One night, Anna hosted a game night among these friends, but it didn't take long for the festivities to devolve into an argument.

ADVERTISEMENT
woman screaming angrily
engin akyurt/unsplash
engin akyurt/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

According to the woman, Anna blew up at her and told her that it was "incredibly disrespectful" to show up with Bailey without asking for permission first.

ADVERTISEMENT

The rant continued

ADVERTISEMENT

Anna went on to say that the woman couldn't just assume people will always be happy with having a dog around.

ADVERTISEMENT
A guide dog during the celebration of the XI ONCE Progressive Unity  State Congress, at the ONCE Sports and Cultural Center (CDC), on October
 8, 2022, in Madrid, Spain.
Alejandro Martinez Velez/Europa Press via Getty Images
Alejandro Martinez Velez/Europa Press via Getty Images
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

She also went as far as to say that she should've just stayed home if she couldn't handle going for a few hours without Bailey.

ADVERTISEMENT

An attempt to keep the peace

ADVERTISEMENT

The woman tried to apologize but also expressed how confused this made her since she couldn't imagine why she would've expected someone who needed a service dog not to bring it with her.

ADVERTISEMENT
caleb-fisher-pgUbpDLJh3E-unsplash
Unsplash/Caleb Fisher
Unsplash/Caleb Fisher
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

For some reason, this only made Anna angrier.

ADVERTISEMENT

A dangerous compromise

ADVERTISEMENT

Although she didn't feel comfortable taking the risk of leaving her dog outside, the woman felt pressured by Anna, and agreed to leave Bailey outside while they had their game night inside.

ADVERTISEMENT
woman arguing with man on couch
Blake Cheek/unsplash+
Blake Cheek/unsplash+
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

As she let the dog outside, she had a sinking feeling that something could go wrong.

ADVERTISEMENT

People pleasing

ADVERTISEMENT

Although this makes her feel stupid now, the woman said she agreed because she didn't want to see any more conflict in the group.

ADVERTISEMENT
woman talking to another woman on couch holding phone
Christina @ wocintechchat.com/unsplash
Christina @ wocintechchat.com/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

In her words, "I didn't want to inconvenience anyone more or continue stirring the pot."

ADVERTISEMENT

Exactly what she was afraid of

ADVERTISEMENT

Unfortunately, circumstances would soon demonstrate clearly why the woman needs Bailey as she had a seizure serious enough to make her black out.

ADVERTISEMENT
paramedics loading person into ambulance
Getty Images/unsplash
Getty Images/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

This led her to slam her head on the floor hard enough that she had to be hospitalized.

ADVERTISEMENT

No shame whatsoever

ADVERTISEMENT

While most people would expect Anna to feel mortified and regretful after causing such a serious incident, she apparently refused to admit she had done anything wrong.

ADVERTISEMENT
indignant woman standing with hands on hips
user18526052/freepik
user18526052/freepik
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

What the woman heard from her friends was that Anna accused her of passing out for attention and bitterly said she had gotten her way.

ADVERTISEMENT

An explosion of outrage

ADVERTISEMENT

If they weren't inclined to do so already, this callous attitude ensured that the woman's friends unloaded on Anna in a fury.

ADVERTISEMENT
angry friends standing together
drobotdea/freepik
drobotdea/freepik
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

They described her as hateful, toxic, and a jealous witch. In the aftermath, the friend group has dropped contact with Anna completely.

ADVERTISEMENT

It doesn't end there

ADVERTISEMENT

In the time since the incident, Anna, her sister, and her mother have all repeatedly contacted her.

ADVERTISEMENT
stressed woman touching her head in car's back seat
Blake Cheek/unsplash
Blake Cheek/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

In these messages, they've berated her and demanded she "fix this situation." Presumably, this means somehow convincing her friends to forget what they witnessed and let Anna back into the friend group without so much as an apology.

ADVERTISEMENT

Seeking perspective

ADVERTISEMENT

Although the woman couldn't see how she could possibly be in the wrong, these messages started to get to her enough that she decided to see how those on Reddit saw her situation.

ADVERTISEMENT
jenny-ueberberg-brfcpBfCebY-unsplash
Unsplash/Jenny Ueberberg
Unsplash/Jenny Ueberberg
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

And the overwhelming majority of commenters were horrified by Anna and her family's actions. As one user said, "She literally caused you to SUFFER A MEDICAL INCIDENT. She had so little regard for your health and wellbeing that she caused you actual harm."

ADVERTISEMENT

Don't suffer in silence

ADVERTISEMENT

Some commenters also advised telling the friends who stuck up for her what Anna's family has been sending her.

ADVERTISEMENT
Woman embracing with their eyes closed
Gemma Chua-Tran/unsplash
Gemma Chua-Tran/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

As one of them put it, "Your friends deserve to know that they did the right thing. Seeing her sick (sic) her family on you will reassure them they were right about her."

ADVERTISEMENT

Bailey should not have been a surprise

ADVERTISEMENT

A few commenters bought Anna's argument that the woman shouldn't have assumed that she would be OK with a dog that has not visited her home before, but the woman revealed that it made no sense for Anna to say this.

ADVERTISEMENT
A member of a victim assitance association pets a service dog before the  opening of the trial of the Millas case in Marseille, southern France, 
on September 19, 2022. The presence of an emotional support dog during 
the hearing allows attendees to relax and express themselves freely.
Nicolas Tucat/AFP via Getty Images
Nicolas Tucat/AFP via Getty Images
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

The woman said she does her best to accommodate new people but that Anna had known her for over a decade. She also knew the specifics of Bailey's job and had even seen her care for the woman during seizures.

ADVERTISEMENT

A bizarre revelation

ADVERTISEMENT

Baffled at this information, some commenters wracked their brains for a reasonable explanation to Anna's extreme reaction to Bailey's presence. One asked if she had a traumatic experience with a dog or an allergy.

ADVERTISEMENT
miranda-garside--OXSTyQ864k-unsplash
Unsplash/Miranda Garside
Unsplash/Miranda Garside
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

And what they learned was not only that Anna has a dog of her own, but that this dog gets along very well with Bailey.

ADVERTISEMENT

A hint at Anna's true motivation

ADVERTISEMENT

In response to a comment, the woman talked about how supportive her best friend since the third grade has been through her journey. He was with her around the time she was first diagnosed to ensure she was OK and he's always among the first to respond when she has a seizure in public.

ADVERTISEMENT
man and woman embracing on rowboat among glaciers
Getty Images/unsplash+
Getty Images/unsplash+
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

As she worded it, "He's truly a saint of a human and idk what I’d do without him."

ADVERTISEMENT

Anna sees a threat

ADVERTISEMENT

This best friend was also quick to deride Anna's previous comments about Bailey and has generally been very protective of the woman.

ADVERTISEMENT
eye crying at seeing couple kiss
Thomas Wolter/pixabay
Thomas Wolter/pixabay
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

This has led her to say things like, "You don't have to defend her all the time, you don’t have to be with her and watching her. You can have a life too."

ADVERTISEMENT

The incident confirmed her suspicions

ADVERTISEMENT

Although the man was also quick to shut this kind of talk down, it's also given the woman a sense of where some of Anna's problem with her originate.

ADVERTISEMENT
woman thinking while writing in special diary
No Revisions/unsplash
No Revisions/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

At this point, she suspects that Anna has feelings for him and sees her as competition, despite the fact that they're all supposed to be just friends.

ADVERTISEMENT

Too perceptive for her own good

ADVERTISEMENT

However, what the woman's friends don't know is that this best friend has confessed his feelings for her.

ADVERTISEMENT
woman laughing while pressing up to man while they sit on rocks
Toa Heftiba/unsplash
Toa Heftiba/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

So the woman is also now wondering if Anna sensed these feelings as well and is grasping at any excuse she can find to tear the woman down.

ADVERTISEMENT

Commenters become invested in her love life

ADVERTISEMENT

When the woman heard his confession, she told her best friend that she isn't currently in the right head space to date someone and he said he's willing to wait.

ADVERTISEMENT
man and woman smiling close to each other's faces
Giorgio Trovato/unsplash
Giorgio Trovato/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

This led some users to ask if she reciprocated his feelings and advised being honest if she didn't.

ADVERTISEMENT

She meant exactly what she said

ADVERTISEMENT

To this, the woman replied that she shares his romantic feelings, but is facing the possibility of having to undergo surgery.

ADVERTISEMENT
Haley Lu Richardson with oxygen tubes in hospital in Five Feet Apart
CBS films/Lionsgate via MovieStillsDb
CBS films/Lionsgate via MovieStillsDb
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

With that in mind, she's decided that she wants to get her medical decisions in order before she commits to any relationship.

ADVERTISEMENT

Such a wholesome part of the story

ADVERTISEMENT

The woman said she told the man she didn't want to string him along or waste his time, but he told her she's worth waiting for. And while some praised the intelligence in this decision, others encouraged her to go for him once everything's settled.

ADVERTISEMENT
man holding woman's waist while she covers her face in amazement
Andre Jackson/unsplash
Andre Jackson/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

In response, she wrote, "Thank you! I really want to, I'm just letting my insecurities get the best of me. I know we need to have another talk."

ADVERTISEMENT

The final word on the matter

ADVERTISEMENT

With everything cleared, the only further recommendation most commenters had was to block Anna's family and enjoy the company of her real friends.

ADVERTISEMENT
young woman dismissing other young woman
Obie Fernandez/unsplash
Obie Fernandez/unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

And in an update, she thanked everyone for their input and well-wishes. She also confirmed that she had done as advised and would have no further contact with Anna's family.