British singer Lily Allen recently shared rather a surprising, even somewhat controversial revelation in an episode of her podcast Miss Me?. She had to return her adopted dog because it ate hers and her children’s passports during the pandemic. As Allen described the incident—a “logistical nightmare”—it prevented her children from seeing their father, Sam Cooper, back in England for several months.
Allen replayed the amazingly frustrating ordeal, saying the canine had chewed up her passport and those of her two children, which had important visas for trips. If ever there was bad timing, this was it, as the pandemic made replacing the documents not only arduous but very expensive.
“I cannot tell you how much money it cost me to get everything replaced because it was in COVID,”
Allen said.
The emotional toll was evident, as Allen admitted the dog’s behavior pushed her to the limit, saying,
“I just couldn’t look at her — I was like, ‘You’ve ruined my life'”,
confessing she was at her wit’s end in managing its behavior. The passport mishap seemed to top if off for Allen, who was now forced to make a painful decision: to turn the dog back in to the shelter.
It has elicited mixed reactions from the public. Some sympathized with Allen, understanding that it must have put her under a lot of pressure, especially in such a trying time. Others, however, condemned her act and basically questioned if it was responsible to return a pet after such an ordeal.
That incident drives home, more than ever in their lives, just how unpredictable life could be and the prima facie tough decisions that come with rearing pets—not always foreseen. As many a pet parent would wonder what to do in such a circumstance, Allen’s story reveals the complexities and emotional struggles involved in caring for a pet, much less one that does not exactly fit into family life.
