Virgin River fans have slammed Lizzie (played by Sarah Dugdale) and Denny (Kai Bradbury) for their contentious decision about their baby.

When Netflix’s popular romantic drama returned for its sixth season, Lizzie was several months pregnant and eager to welcome her new bundle of joy.

However, motherhood will come with much more than the usual challenges of raising a child as she and Denny had a tough decision to make.

Following Denny’s diagnosis of Huntington’s disease, the expecting parents realised there is a 50 percent chance their child will develop the same condition, a genetic disorder that causes nerve cells in the brain to break down, leading to a lack of coordination that can worsen severely over time.

Despite being the grandson of a doctor, Vernon ‘Doc’ Mullins (Tim Matheson) and being close friends with nurse practitioner Mel Monroe (Alexandra Breckenridge), Lizzie and Denny are opting not to test their child for the disease.

Many viewers were left baffled by their decision to keep themselves and their child in the dark about their potential health problems, with one recently taking to Reddit to complain.

“Not opting for prenatal testing for HD is for me the weirdest (and most selfish) turn of events with Doc as the grandfather of the baby, and Mel guiding Liz through the pregnancy and all,” they fumed.

“It’s a 50% chance of passing it on! The burden of care for caregivers is very high.

“I have a health science background and I am used to series being unrealistic and I am okay with that (like applying a tourniquet but the person it’s being applied on is not screaming bloody murder…), but this HD baby stuff is next level. Anyone else who feels this way?”

Some fans agreed, with one user replying: “Honestly, it’s irresponsible to casually have children when there is a 50% chance they will have a horrifying genetic disease and early death.”

And another said: “Yes, it’s a preposterous storyline. I don’t even want to watch any more.”

But some Virgin River fans are convinced there’s another reason why Lizzie has decided not to test the baby.

Could Ricky actually be the father?
“OK, the whole reason she won’t genetic test for Huntington’s is because the baby is likely not Denny’s correct it’s supposedly Ricky‘s (Grayson Gurnsey),” one viewer commented.

“I missed this part and just found out a few weeks ago on this subreddit.”

Another predicted: “The storyline is pretty boring and extra. In my opinion it doesn’t really add much and most likely, the baby isn’t even Denny’s.

“I really don’t think the writers know how to write a storyline where the baby is positive for HD.”

Others have even suggested the baby could even be Parker’s (Markian Tarasiuk), Lizzie’s ex-boyfriend who paid her a visit in season three.

But, does the timeline match up with her pregnancy? Fans will have to tune into Virgin River’s upcoming seventh season to find out.