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Potential spoilers if you haven't seen the Rick and Morty episode "Pickle Rick" (S3E3) yet [duh].

In the opening scene, Rick reveals himself to be a pickle to Morty. Beth brings Summer out to the garage so they can all go to family therapy. Rick acts like he doesn't remember agreeing on the time for therapy and acts like he wouldn't be able to go-to counseling as a pickle. Rick even says Beth could just pop him in someone's pocket or purse. Why doesn't Beth want Pickle Rick to come with the family to therapy?

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Because of pure spite. Rick had agreed to come to family therapy then changed himself into a pickle to try to evade it and not go. Then lied about it. And about the syringe. Beth caught him lying. And repeatedly gave him a chance to come clean. Rick didn't. Beth was basically thinking:

"Fine.You turned yourself into pickle so you could stay home. Now you're going to stay home, as a pickle! Until we return. Serves you right."

She is treating Rick like a parent treating a child pretending to be sick so it won't have to go shopping.

Sure honey, you do not have to go shopping but... because you ARE sick, you are too sick to play and have to stay in bed for the rest of the day! Unless, you get better and we go shopping and once we finish shopping you can go play. No? You are sick? For real? Ok, get well.

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    I think why I don't immediately think Beth could ever feel spite towards her father is because she defends him for not coming to the therapy. She basically told the therapist he was off doing big science that was more important than therapy (knowing she left him in a pickle because she took the anti-pickle serum). I am more wondering if it's something to do with the car ride home conversation or I missed something in a previous episode (like Jerry and Beth going to intergalactic marriage counseling) that hints to her thinking Rick doesn't need to waste his time on counseling for the kids.
    – finleyarcher
    Aug 8, 2017 at 21:27
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    It's an excuse for the therapist. Beth is defending Rick when she is talking about him to other people but is almost a complete passive doormat when she is talking with him even if she is angry at him, because she is afraid he would leave forever. Pickle Rick was one of the rare chances for her to make a point.
    – jo1storm
    Aug 9, 2017 at 7:12
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    @finleyarcher: At some subconscious level, Beth is aware that her father is not who she makes him out to be (she defends him, but she implicitly also shows that something about Rick needs to be defended). Beth's decision gave her the best of both worlds: (1) If Rick is telling the truth (he didn't mean it + the syringe is not important), then he gets to unpickle himself and not go to the therapist. (2) If Rick is lying to her (he did it on purpose + he needs to syringe), then he is cleverly punished by taking the syringe and basically "imprisoning" him as a pickle until Beth returns.
    – Flater
    Oct 16, 2017 at 9:56
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    @finleyarcher: Consider it this way: It takes 60 minutes to drive from A to B. Alice is speeding because she wants to reach B in less time. But when she gets caught speeding, she'll end up taking longer because of having to deal with police. This nullifies the incentive to speed, because you won't get there faster (due to police holding you up). Rick tried to avoid wasting his time (by going to a therapist for an hour) by becoming a pickle for a few minutes. But because Beth takes the syringe, Rick is pickled for the same amount of time as it would've taken to go to the therapist.
    – Flater
    Oct 16, 2017 at 10:00
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The whole therapy experience was about showing a normal life. From the start of the therapy session Beth tries to portrait their situation as normal, and needles to say she fails measurably. But nevertheless I think this was the main intention and Rick knowing it, turns himself into a pickle.

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