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my family has 3 dogs and 2 cats, which is too many so none of them get as much attention as they deserve. the worst part is that most of them are because my mom wanted them but she doesn't even do anything other than walking our dogs once a week and cleaning one cat's litter box (once it's way dirtier than it should ever get). most of the basics for our dogs and 1 cat my dad takes care of (food, letting the dogs outside, water) but the rest falls to me, which is really difficult. For the dogs I bathe them, brush their teeth, play with them, help walk them, train them, and cuddle with them. for my cat I clean his litter box ever couple days, make sure he always has fresh water, feed him, monitor him for ibd flare-ups, cuddle with him, and play with him. he also has separation anxiety and cries when I'm not with him (not just anyone, it has to be me). meanwhile my mom dresses our small dog up like a doll and babies her and then gets offended when she wants to spend time with me when my mom doesn't do hardly anything to take care of her. when I still had the time, I walked her after school ever single day from when she was a puppy, teaching her how to walk on a leash. I hang out with her in the family room all the time while my mom is away or upstairs. yeah she's gonna like me better, stop sitting their pouting when you don't put in the effort to make her like you. be glad you're her second favorite. anyway, doing all of that is too much for me. I often skip brushing our dog's teeth, I haven't bathed our large dogs in several years since I can't get them into the bathtub on my own. and I have depression, anxiety, and adhd (and right now a knee injury), and I'm working a full time job over the summer so I'm gone from 7-4. my mom has schizoeffective disorder, depression, anxiety, PTSD, and arthritis in her knees, so it's not entirely her fault. but she knew most of that before we got any pets. despite all this, none of their conditions are bad enough for me to justify asking my parents to surrender them, and selfishly I love them all too much to let them go. but it all makes me feel like shit for not being able to do something that I really shouldn't be expected to do at all.