I was probably just being a miserable old fart yesterday. When I come to think about it, I don’t really hate dogs or any other animal, and was probably just getting grumpy because they were getting all the attention and not me. Truth be told, I do see the point of pets. When I’m lying on the sofa in the evenings watching tv, our cat Guy often comes and lies on my chest. For a moment I consider shooing him away, but then he purrs the sweetest, most content purr, and settles down as if to watch the box with me. And all I can do is cuddle him. Such unconditional love is wonderful: sure, you can analyse it and say that he just wants food or whatever, but that misses the point. The point of love of any kind is that it goes beyond language, far deeper into something nobody can ever explain. That’s what pets give us; that’s their point.