It is difficult not to be judgmental of how other people raise their children. But there comes a point where it becomes essential to step in, speak up, and put a stop to irresponsible behavior. Redditor u/Intrepid-Pudding6327 shared how her cousin “literally abandoned” her own child at the OP’s front door while she was out of town, with no heads-up whatsoever.

The child was endangered: she was left completely alone for around a day until she was accidentally found by the author’s parents. You’ll find the full story as you read on. Bored Panda has reached out to u/Intrepid-Pudding6327 via Reddit for comment, and we’ll update the article as soon as we hear back from her.

There is no excuse for a parent to abandon and endanger their child

Image credits:  AntonioGravante (not the actual photo)

A woman shared how her niece got dumped at her front door while she was away on holiday, without any warning

Image credits: drazenphoto (not the actual photo)

Image credits: u/Intrepid-Pudding6327

It was a miracle that the infant wasn’t badly hurt

Image credits: Tatiana Syrikova (not the actual photo)

Let us be very clear here: there is no excuse for what the author’s cousin did. None whatsoever. Not only was this a serious example of parental neglect, but there was also a huge chance that the child could have gotten hurt.

As the OP noted in her posts, she lives in a rural area where coyotes and other wild animals frequently roam. It is a miracle that the infant wasn’t hurt and that she was found by the author’s parents. Otherwise, the child would have been abandoned for around four days, by the time the OP would have come back from her camping trip along with her husband.

Her husband did the right thing and got in touch with the police over the incident. However, u/Intrepid-Pudding6327’s cousin and aunt both lied about the entire situation to the officers. They suggested that the OP had agreed to babysit the infant. The author neither agreed to watch her niece nor did she have the ability to do so, seeing as she was away.

There were plenty of other things the mother could have done

Image credits: RDNE Stock project (not the actual photo)

There are legitimate grounds for concern for the child’s welfare here. Hopefully, the cousin will have learned her lesson and will never endanger her daughter like this ever again. However, the fact that she’d leave her on someone’s porch without confirming that they’re there suggests that there are more issues at home.

It’s also shocking how awful the cousin was at communication and respecting boundaries. She did not get in touch with the redditor to confirm that she and her husband would be able to babysit. Also, by abandoning her child on their porch, the cousin also implied that she didn’t care about their opinions either way: they’d be forced to watch the infant whether they wanted to or not.

While it is entirely understandable that some parents are exhausted and need a helping hand, it’s logical to ask for that help first. After all, who would feel comfortable leaving their kid to someone who doesn’t even want to babysit them? There were other people, aside from the redditor, who could have possibly stepped in to look after the infant, starting from the OP’s parents to the cousin’s own mom. And it’s not like hiring a babysitter is an impossible task either. In short, out of all the possibilities available, the cousin chose the very worst one.

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The mom may be guilty of physically neglecting her daughter

Image credits: Austin Guevara (not the actual photo)

According to the NSPCC, neglect is defined as the ongoing failure to meet a child’s basic needs. Neglect is the most common form of child abuse and can be divided into four main categories, from physical and educational neglect to emotional and medical neglect.

Physical neglect means that a child isn’t cared for at the most basic level: they lack food, clothing, and shelter, and they aren’t kept safe.

Educational neglect, meanwhile, means that the parents do not provide their children with a proper education. Emotional neglect happens when parents ignore, humiliate, intimidate, or isolate their kids, depriving them of the support and nurturing that they need.

While medical neglect means that a child isn’t given proper healthcare, including ignoring medical recommendations.

In this particular case, the OP’s cousin can be said to have physically neglected her daughter because she did not supervise her properly, failed to give her food, and left her in a rural area with literal coyotes slinking around.

Many people were outraged and urged the author to report her cousin to Child Protective Services

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