kalani hilliker
Kalani Hilliker's mom, Kira Girard (not pictured), was at the epicenter of the drama in "Dance Moms" Season 5, episode 25. Here, Kalani is pictured performing at ALDC LA in Santa Monica, California, on May 30. Lifetime/Bobby Quillard

When it comes to their daughters’ dance education, the stars of “Dance Moms” don’t mess around. On Tuesday night’s Season 5 installment of the Lifetime reality series, the moms decided to let coach Abby Lee Miller know they want their kids to receive more dance training. As teased in the promos for episode 25, Abby didn’t take so kindly to their request.

“Why don't you quit? Break your contract and you can go to hell and take a class. Your kid can go with you,” Abby told the dance moms after they complained their girls needed to take more classes while living in Los Angeles. As most viewers know, Abby transferred her elite junior team from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to the West Coast at the beginning of the season in the quest to open her new studio, ALDC LA (Abby Lee Dance Company Los Angeles).

Following Abby’s failure to fulfill the moms’ request, the competition's judge in episode 25 told the girls exactly what the moms had been saying all along: they need more training. Back in the dressing room, the moms laid into Abby that the girls need to take more dance classes. Abby responded by telling the moms they were "overstepping" their boundaries before breaking down into tears.

When the moms saw Abby was upset, they sent their children over to give her hugs. She willingly accepted embraces from dancers Maddie Ziegler, Mackenzie Ziegler and Kendall Vertes, but shockingly shunned three of her dancers. When dance mom Kira Girard saw that her daughter, Kalani Hilliker, was denied a hug from Abby, she lashed out.

"Abby, I don't know why you would ask the other girls to walk away from you because they support you just as much... Don't you dare try to make my child look like that!" Kira said. Abby responded by telling Kira her kid would “rather be with any other mother here than with you.”

Unsurprisingly, Kira didn’t take the insult lying down. She told Abby to “go to hell” and informed Kalani they were leaving. She soon after returned — after Abby was shown leaving the dressing room — and allowed Kalani to compete in the group dance, but threatened she may not be back for episode 26. (“Dance Moms” spoiler sites have confirmed the mother-daughter duo will return.)

So, why did Abby leave after their fight? According to Kira, the “Dance Moms” lead was “kicked out.”

Kira’s comments seem to mirror Abby's interview with Entertainment Tonight in May. In her interview, Abby revealed she was removed by production during one Season 5 episode taping following an altercation with the moms. As a result, she said she did not return to the show for one week.

“There was an altercation and the producer threw me out," Abby said. "So I left and I didn’t come back. There’s about one week that I just wasn’t there,and I thought, ‘You know what? If they can do it without me, do it without me."

Do you think Abby deserved to be removed after her fight with Kira? Sound off in the comments section below. “Dance Moms” airs Tuesday at 9 p.m. EDT on Lifetime.