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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Lifestyle
Julia Banim

'My wife wants to name our baby after an animal - I've put my foot down'

An expectant father claims to have been more than a little taken aback by his wife's unusual baby name suggestion and feels he had no other choice but to veto it.

His wife, Michelle, who is pregnant with their third child, has her heart set on the name 'Koala', which is of course a type of adorable marsupial found in various areas of Australia.

Although he has nothing against koalas himself, he does find the name to be an "odd choice", which he fears won't be anywhere near as cute once she's an adult out in the world of work.

Unfortunately, his wife doesn't understand his reservations, and now refuses to talk to him, accusing him of "undermining her choices."

The couple have never even been to Australia (Stock Photo) (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

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Taking to Reddit, the exasperated dad explained that he and his wife have a tradition in their family whereby she names any girls and he gets to name boys. The other parent gets veto power if they don't like the name in question.

As they've already had two sons, he naturally assumed she'd be picking from one of the girl names they've previously discussed and was surprised when she threw him a curveball.

The unnamed 30-year-old man, who goes by the username u/NoFroyo4Koala, wrote: "Now don't get me wrong, I have nothing against koalas, but I think naming a kid after them is a little bizarre.

"It'd be adorable when she's little, but just imagine her working retail and having KOALA printed on her chest for all to see. Neither of us is Australian or has ever been there so it just seems an odd choice.

"I vetoed the name, said we can call her Koala if Michelle wants, but she deserves to not have that on her birth certificate."

Unfortunately, Michelle got upset at this point, locking herself in the bedroom and accusing him of "undermining her choices." She now refuses to speak to him, and even her parents have called to tell him off.

Although he didn't mean to undermine his wife, he just doesn't think the name Koala is a good idea at all and believes it's going to "spell nothing but trouble."

One fellow Reddit user wrote: "Thank you for vetoing the name. Yes, koalas are cute but it is not an appropriate name for a child. And yes she will probably be bullied and will have difficulties in the workplace. And also she will probably be mad at you at some point for giving her that name."

Another said: "I am a vet in Australia and I specialise in native wildlife. Koalas might look cute, but they are vile, grumpy, smelly, and aggressive. They're also...not very smart.

"They are not my favourite animal. It's a stupid name for a child. You might as well name her a*******, because all koalas are a*******."

Has your partner ever disagreed with you regarding an unusual baby name? We pay for stories. Email us at julia.banim@reachplc.com

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