Ellentomologist
Hatchling Member
Hiya,
I've been avoiding commenting on this thread because I find it almost viscerally upsetting. I don't really have much in the realm of advice, just my condolences.
It sounds like this household isn't very functional and I don't think you're going to get much of anywhere politely. Unfortunately, I think you need to be equally careful with any escalation you make. Do you have an SO and have you talked to them about this in any length? If you have a partner, it's fairly important you two be on the same page regarding this family. Both before you do anything likely to ruffle feathers with them and just so your SO is clear that the household is not on the "green light" list of people trusted with your daughter.
If you have an opportunity and feel safe to, I certainly would talk to all parents/guardians involved if you've only talked to the mother so far. They're obviously not a unified front if the mother tried to sell you the dragon and the boy has a new one now. ://
I think Brandon's suggestion of going to the police over it is a circumstantially good idea, but my experience is that the police aren't going to care unless you already paid for the dragon when it was injured/killed. Even then, they likely won't do anything, but under those circumstances getting them involved will signal to the parents that you're not kidding around. Unfortunately, like I say, they could take it as an attack and further escalate the situation.
Caution is the better part of valor, and while what they're doing and have done is god awful, please keep in mind that you're living next to these people and may have to put up with them in the long run. I low-key hate them for what they did, but it's still a matter of you and your daughter's safety as well. People like this are often reactionary, you know?
On that note, remember that stealing the new animal would definitely be illegal and that you would almost definitely be a suspect. You might want to keep that in mind just in case the animal runs away or gets snagged by a wild animal outdoors, too, since obviously the parents aren't paying much attention and the kid is, well. You know. Lots of things eat lizards, too. Hawks, skunks, cats and dogs, just to name a few that almost every region has. Since they live so close by, if the lizard were to go missing I wouldn't put it past them to accuse you or even go creeping around or even trespassing to peer through your windows trying to find it. Just something you should keep in mind, though I might be being a bit paranoid due to a similar situation that happened to my grandma with a dog named Nicky.
Anyway, good luck, and my sincere condolences. Thank you for caring and trying to help the animals' situation.
Best,
-Ellen
I've been avoiding commenting on this thread because I find it almost viscerally upsetting. I don't really have much in the realm of advice, just my condolences.
It sounds like this household isn't very functional and I don't think you're going to get much of anywhere politely. Unfortunately, I think you need to be equally careful with any escalation you make. Do you have an SO and have you talked to them about this in any length? If you have a partner, it's fairly important you two be on the same page regarding this family. Both before you do anything likely to ruffle feathers with them and just so your SO is clear that the household is not on the "green light" list of people trusted with your daughter.
If you have an opportunity and feel safe to, I certainly would talk to all parents/guardians involved if you've only talked to the mother so far. They're obviously not a unified front if the mother tried to sell you the dragon and the boy has a new one now. ://
I think Brandon's suggestion of going to the police over it is a circumstantially good idea, but my experience is that the police aren't going to care unless you already paid for the dragon when it was injured/killed. Even then, they likely won't do anything, but under those circumstances getting them involved will signal to the parents that you're not kidding around. Unfortunately, like I say, they could take it as an attack and further escalate the situation.
Caution is the better part of valor, and while what they're doing and have done is god awful, please keep in mind that you're living next to these people and may have to put up with them in the long run. I low-key hate them for what they did, but it's still a matter of you and your daughter's safety as well. People like this are often reactionary, you know?
On that note, remember that stealing the new animal would definitely be illegal and that you would almost definitely be a suspect. You might want to keep that in mind just in case the animal runs away or gets snagged by a wild animal outdoors, too, since obviously the parents aren't paying much attention and the kid is, well. You know. Lots of things eat lizards, too. Hawks, skunks, cats and dogs, just to name a few that almost every region has. Since they live so close by, if the lizard were to go missing I wouldn't put it past them to accuse you or even go creeping around or even trespassing to peer through your windows trying to find it. Just something you should keep in mind, though I might be being a bit paranoid due to a similar situation that happened to my grandma with a dog named Nicky.
Anyway, good luck, and my sincere condolences. Thank you for caring and trying to help the animals' situation.
Best,
-Ellen