Even if it might be hard to keep up with at times, it’s important for our healh and happiness to keep our homes clean, especially high traffic places like the kitchen.
It’s also important to clean our cleaners, like wiping down the vacuum and swapping out the kitchen sponge for a fresh one when needed, pointed out the members of the “Am I Overreacting?” (AIO) subReddit.
So when Redditor fargos2ep8 witnessed his girlfriend respond to their cat pooping on the kitchen table by grabbing the kitchen sponge to clean it up, he was grossed out.
But when she then rinsed it off and attempted to put it back, to later use it on dishes again, the Original Poster (OP) could not fathom why she wouldn’t grab a fresh one to use for the dishes.
He asked the sub:
“Am I overreacting by being grossed out that my girlfriend used our dish sponge to clean up cat poop?”
The OP asked his girlfriend to clean up a mess while his hands were full.
“My girlfriend (29 Female) and I (31 Male) were clearing off the kitchen table to set up a board game.”
“I noticed a little crusty brown smudge on the table. For some reason, my instinct was to sniff it, and I was rewarded with the knowledge that it was cat poop.”
“We have two cats, and one of them had an upset stomach earlier this week, so she must have had something on her butt after using the litter box and then sat on the table. No big deal.”
“I was holding the game box, so I asked my girlfriend if she could grab something to clean it with and nodded my head toward the kitchen sink.”
The OP was surprised by how his girlfriend addressed the situation.
“What I MEANT with the nod was the paper towels and disinfectant/all-purpose cleaner that are in the cabinet under the sink.”
“What my girlfriend grabbed was the sponge that we use to clean our dishes!”
“Shocked, I watched as she wipes the poop off the table. I told her, ‘We clean our dishes with that,’ in an annoyed voice, thinking now we have to throw that in the garbage and open a new sponge.”
“This is annoying because that sponge is only a week old but not the end of the world since you have to replace kitchen sponges with some frequency anyway.”
But then the OP went from surprised to horrified.
“Then, to my horror, she rinses the sponge under hot water and rings it out and PUTS IT BACK on the edge of the sink.”
“I am flabbergasted by this. I am laughing at how ridiculous this is.”
“I tell her we can’t use that, I don’t want to use a spoon that’s been washed with a cat s**t sponge.”
“She says it’s no big deal because once you use soap, the soap will break down anything bad on the sponge.”
“We go back and forth on this for a while, and she finally agrees to throw it away even though she ‘doesn’t know why I’m acting so upset about this.'”
“We have had these cats for five years. All I can think about is how much s**t and puke has been cleaned up with dish sponges without me knowing.”
“If she did this so mindlessly, what else have I been unknowingly exposing myself to when washing my dishes?”
“AIO?”
Fellow Redditors weighed in:
- NOR: Not Overreacting
- YOR: You’re Overreacting
Some were intensely grossed out and immediately over this relationship.
“Straight to jail, I could not.” – Simple_Assumption591
“Life sentence out of your life. This is abhorrent behavior.” – Comfortable-Rain8384
“I don’t care how long you’ve been with her, I would ghost her. I cannot imagine how many germs she’s exposed you to or how many more you’ll be exposed to in the future. No, thank you. NOR” – Vaguedplague
“Hurrrkkk. NOR! NOR! I’m far from a clean freak, but… you don’t mix cat s**t with ANYTHING that touches the dishes!” – NewNameNeededAgain
“My 21-year-old ADHD son, that I still have to get on about not putting his dishes in the sink for the dish fairy to come and wash, would absolutely know better than to do that, and I cannot imagine how someone could do and say something like that with a straight face.” – Certain_Noise5601
“NOR. That’s so disgusting. Maybe she’s trying to be frugal? But if you have multiple cats, I’m assuming you have the funds to buy new sponges or use paper towels to clean up the poop.”
“I would talk to her and tell her how gross it is and how uncomfortable it makes you. Tell her this absolutely cannot happen again.” – Cicada444
“I’m frugal to the point of being cheap, but I don’t care if she took it brand new from the package; it’s trash now. I actually color-code sponges.”
“One for dishes, one for the rest of the kitchen, one for bathrooms, etc. I have paper towels and disposable Swiffer pads for pet accidents and anyone who gets sick. Not worth the risk.” – Objective971
“I can almost guarantee it’s nothing to do w bring frugal. A sponge is literally a dollar. It’s just that some people were raised with much different hygiene standards and apathetic attitudes when it comes to animal waste.”
“Like I’ve known adults who have knowingly let pets just p**s and s**t inside. I’d venture to guess OP’s girlfriend was raised in such a home.” – Alarming_Geologist59
“This isn’t frugal. This is not being taught good hygiene. Everyone knows the pecking order of the sponge. Once a sponge does something gross, it belongs to bathroom duty until it’s thrown away. This is abhorrent behavior.”
“She probably doesn’t wash her hands after she s**ts, either.” – OpalOnyxObsidian
“Buy her a special poop sponge that looks nothing like the dish sponge and then think long and hard about if you want to stay in the relationship.” – tippinnn
Others sided with the OP, as well, and pointed out other boundaries they had with cleaning supplies.
“I don’t even let my husband wash the dish towels with cleaning rags, for example. Straight to jail is right.” – Idontsleepenoughffs
“We have tea towels for drying plates, etc., and we have old tea towels that are used for cleaning. They are not washed in the same wash cycle. I also wouldn’t wash the dog’s stuff with the people’s stuff.” – Ancient-Awareness115
“We also have dog-only towels, wash cloths, and these do not get washed with anything human, even on a sanitize setting! No way, NOR. this would make me gag and maybe throw up.” – frida_mind
“I demote sponges. They start off with dishes and then get moved to cleaning a couple of times before they get thrown out. She can use an old sponge and make it her special poop sponge. This is just foul.” – FortunaRedux
“I cut the corners off the cleaning ones so I can be absolutely sure I’m not using a floor sponge on my dishes.” – Heavy-Manaron2004
“NOR. It’s the cat poop sponge now, is my reaction. In housekeeping, I use the used sponge for all manner of stuff (like: mold, grout, vomit, the porch) and take strangers’ sponges they only used once.”
“Method: I soak it in disinfectant, dry it, and put it in the washing machine on hot. Actual new ones are for dishes.”
“You need a designated ‘gross sponge’ area. Ours is a tin can under the sink after they dry. (It IS gross, she put it ON the sink) But she was probably just picking the fastest way since you were holding the box?”
“Suggestion: cut up old towels into rags so you can toss them and no one gets pooped on paper towels. You gotta use a bunch, so if you’re already throwing something fabric out…” – Sweaty-Battle2556
“I was taught that when scrubby dish sponges started to wear out, they should be put under the sink with the cleaning supplies. That way you could grab a sponge with the cleaning spray for cleaning up messes without 1) using the same sponge on dishes and messes or 2) buying extra sponges just for cleaning.” – agitated_houseplant
“DISGUSTING.! A sponge has pores, and cleaning with soap will NOT kill e.coli, bacteria, or pathogens… sponge used for feces should be discarded because it’s nearly impossible to ensure complete safety, and the risk outweighs the cost of a new sponge.”
“For yourself, I would put it in boiling water for several minutes, or soak it in a bleach solution while she’s not looking if she continues to insist.” – Valuable_City_4230
“Get the sponge slightly wet/very damp and throw it in the microwave for maybe 30 seconds or so, until it’s nice and hot. The microwave will superheat the water molecules and do an instant boil throughout the porous sponge, killing bacteria.”
“This is also super effective if a sponge is starting to get that damp funk smell. And it’s way easier on it than bleach.”
“DO NOT MICROWAVE A DRY SPONGE (fire hazard).” – agitated_houseplant
It’s alarming that it ever occurred to the girlfriend that it might be okay to put the sponge back in the sink where dishes and food are handled, even after rinsing the porous sponge.
She might want to save money or repurpose products, but there were far better ways to do that than subjecting their dishware and future meals to germs.