When my partner was in 7th grade, her best friend got a chinchilla. Cool. They are soft and cute and that’s nice.

Her friend had the thing for a month or so before she grew bored of it and wanted to get rid of it. So she pawned him off on my girlfriend who, being the animal lover she is, accepted him without knowing much about them.

Well... do you know how long those things live? TWENTY YEARS in captivity.

At 13 years old, my girlfriend (out of the goodness of her heart) made a commitment to a little animal that will very likely last until she is 33. All because of one former friend from childhood who was an asshole and didn’t commit to their pet.

The little dude is cute, loves head scratches & raisins, and we love him, but he also flings poop out his cage and has stinky pee that we get to live with every day. For at least 5 more years. Because of someone else’s irresponsible decision over a decade ago.

I wouldn’t change a thing, but it’s a good example of the long term effects of awful decision making.