Allow Us To Explain Lisa & Dorit’s RHOBH Puzzling Dog Rescue Drama

There been a lot going on with Lisa Vanderpump this season of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, and it hasn’t even started airing yet. Aside from Lisa not filming as much with the other women and the rumor that this will be her last season, there is also a situation involving Lisa Vanderpump, Dorit Kemsley, and a rescue dog (you read that right) that has been making headlines. It doesn't help that the dog business is also mentioned first thing in the season 9 trailer for RHOBH or that it makes absolutely no sense.

So, at the very beginning of the trailer, a fake newspaper is shown with the headline, “Lisa at War With Dorit After She Dumps Rescue Dog.” Along with this image, Kyle Richards says in a voiceover, “Someone is hellbent on getting this Dorit story out there.” The trailer promises that “the real story is even more crazy, epic, unbelievable, shocking” than what’s been reported, which begs the question: Wait, what has been reported?

Wouldn't you know it, it all seems to have started with a September 2018 story from Radar Online with the headline, “In The Dog House! Lisa Vanderpump Furious with Dorit Kemsley Over Rescued Pup She Abandoned at a Shelter.” Radar reported that Dorit supposedly adopted a dog from Lisa’s Vanderpump Dogs rescue center, but when it “nipped” her kids, she left the dog at a shelter, upsetting LVP in the process because the ordeal might reflect poorly on Vanderpump Dogs.

But, twist of all twists: Supposedly both women agree that this report isn’t entirely accurate. A “source close to Dorit” told People in September, “That story is completely false,” and explained that Dorit did adopt a dog from Lisa, but the dog bit her 2-year-old daughter, she decided to find it a new home. It was the new owner who gave the dog to a shelter where the pet’s microchip was traced back to Vanderpump Dogs, per the updated story.

Lisa confirmed Dorit's story when speaking with TMZ shortly after the People story came out. “She did not give it to a shelter,” Lisa explained. “The situation was resolved very quickly … Dorit did nothing wrong.”

So, why are we still talking about this if it's all supposedly fine? Why is this even part of the trailer?

Well, as with much Real Housewives drama, the real issue seems to lie in the way Lisa handled the situation rather than, you know, the outcome of the whole thing. People’s source explained that Dorit was surprised when Lisa confronted her about the dog being at a shelter, because she thought the dog was still with the new owner and the fact that Lisa hadn't given her the benefit of the doubt was upsetting. Isn't this always the way with these ladies?

Then there’s the fact that the story was in the press at all, which is what Kyle’s voiceover in the trailer seems to be referring to. There is a rumor that Lisa was the one who leaked the story in the first place. TMZ reported on February 4, “We're told the cast thinks Lisa went all holier than thou — putting out the story while simultaneously denying it and playing peacemaker.” TMZ also reported that their Lisa sources deny this claim.

So the tl;dr of it all is that it was all a big misunderstanding that the series, and allegedly some of the players, are pumping for a little extra small screen drama. Honestly, we should have known.