When you entrust your pets to another person’s care, you do so with the belief they’ll do their best. Unfortunately for one individual in Texas, they found out the hard way. Even worse, the incident involved a significant other. Now, this reddit user is asking if they should lawyer up after their pets were killed by their now ex while in his care. The pets in question? Giant silk moths.
A post seen on r/legaladvice, where you can ask legal questions, details the events surrounding the death of the moths. The now ex-boyfriend had the moths in his possession, who agreed to watch them for the poster. The OP had to get surgery, and it would only be a short period of time.
While in the ex’s custody, OP texted them an apology possibly about an unrelated matter, and it angered him. He then proceeded to kill the moths in an act of devastation that rightfully broke the poster’s heart.
Now, OP is wondering if they have a legal case or if they’d be laughed out of a Texas court. Financially, it could potentially be worth their time. Not only did the ex cause them clear suffering due to the unforgiving act, but there are also financial implications.
OP goes on to explain they had been caring for the critters for eight months. Not only that, they cost $90 to purchase. More importantly, OP was going to use them in a future taxidermy project. That $90 would be flipped for a whopping $700.
OP now asks Reddit, “Is this too wacky for court to the point I should consider a lawyer?” They go on to explain their ex may see it as a “crazy” attempt to see them. Reddit commenters responded helpfully and with compassion regarding the scenario that is driving OP absolutely buggy.
One commenter said, “If you had financial plans for their bodies, you should be referring to them as livestock and not pets. Pets have value when they’re alive. Livestock (usually) has value post death as well.” Commenters agreed there could be protections for livestock since Texas takes livestock-related matters seriously. This is especially true when cruelty is involved.
On a societal level, the potential case pinpoints how doing things out of spite can land you in muddy waters. Keeping promises to others is incredibly important if you want to maintain bonds. Caring for property that somebody else deems important should always be a priority, even when that property is an insect. What may not matter to you could be the world to another person.
