There are a number of different therapeutic roles which pets perform which, in turn, make up the positive and emotional agenda referred to in Chapter 1. It is these factors which are so influential in the process of making decisions about pet ownership.
"Dogs are better company than husbands and they don't talk back - or if they do, you can lock them out".
"I like it when your dog waits on the shore for you when you come in from the surf".
"I had old Soxy for 20 years. She was blind but she was my friend all that time".
"I want a female dog. I understand females. My husband is enough in the male department".
"I'd like a Pit Bull Terrier. They're a one-owner dog. They're really faithful".
"My dogs are faithful and intelligent. When the phone rings they tell me, because sometimes I don't hear it".
"They make the atmosphere warmer. We were all brought up to think we would have a house and a family and a fence and animals, as if we have to have that as a symbol of normality".
"They're like kids, you don't get rid of them because they do something bad. You have your good times and your bad times with them".
There is something soothing about stroking or patting an animal. Even the feel of its fur can be comforting. Venting one's frustrations, prejudices and anger on an uncomplaining and unvengeful pet can also be a relief from the demands of normal human relations.
"They really relax me. I'm hypertensive. I have been for years. When I cuddle my cat, I can feel the tension dropping away".
"I think having an animal is good for you - and it saves you from strangling the kids".
"If you're feeling grumpy, they calm you down. If the family is at each other's throats, the dog'll be patted by everyone".
"It's good to spend a few minutes a day spoiling an animal. They're soothing. They bring people's blood pressure down".
Pets allow their owners to show emotion without judging them; pets give pleasure when they show their own emotions; and for humans, telling animal stories can be a thoroughly enjoyable pastime.
"I cry into their fur. They're not judgemental, they never reprimand you".
"Dogs are good in nursing homes. They're wonderful for the residents, so much better to look at than a fish tank".
"They've got such character, they look sad when you go".
"Our dog hates suitcases. He knows it means we're going away".
"We called in to see some friends. He's got cancer of the throat and he's just had an operation - he's never had a dog before because of the vegetable garden, but now they've got this Silky Terrier, and there he was, pleading with his wife to let it in , it looks to me as if it's the dog he loves the most".
"They're little furry persons to us. They have their own little personalities. First we had a Siamese; he talked, he was so intelligent, then we got a stray and he's just as sweet and intelligent and beautiful".
"When our dog died after 17 years, my 15 year-old son cried his heart out. We buried the dog under the tree, and placed a cross".
"They give you so much joy, the household wouldn't be the same without them".
"He loves being cuddled. As soon as I sit down he jumps on my knee it's annoying sometimes, but I still let him".
"The dog and the cat love the attention, whereas the other day my daughter said 'stop stroking me Mum, I'm not a cat!"
"My dog talks to me, he answers back and everything. When he wants food he says, 'Mmm, Mmm'"
"You have to relate to animals to allay their fears".
"When I go to the toilet he puts his paws under the door. If he rolls over and I don't cuddle him, he goes to someone else for a cuddle".
"Our cat sits on your knee and puts his paw up to your face. He's saying, 'cuddle me'"
The relationship does not require the same input in terms of time and effort as a human one, and yet the rewards can be great love, gratitude, fun and affection, and the animal keeps on giving even when the owner is (temporarily) neglectful.
"They don't answer back and it doesn't matter if you're good, bad or indifferent, they'll love you".
"If you give a dog love, it'll give you love back, with no strings attached. But with a human, you don't necessarily get back what you give".
"My dog costs me less than $5 a week, but you should see what she gives me back".
"What you put in is what you get out".
"My husband wasn't allowed animals as a child, now he loves our dog. When he gets home at night he says 'Daddy's home'"
"I'm not an animal lover but my husband is hopeless - the latest addition to the household is a cat which he brought home from a funeral - it belonged to the fellow that died".
The simplicity of their demands forces one "to keep your feet on the ground" and to follow some sort of routine in terms of food and care.
"Having an animal gives me a responsibility. If you're on your own you have to get up for the animals. Their total dependence stops you giving in to yourself".
"If I didn't have my Buck, I wouldn't go for a walk".
"He was a big commitment. Every Sunday we'd walk for miles. He was so lovable and intelligent".
"It's a living thing. You have a responsibility to keep it healthy".
"Once they're out of the cute stage, it's a long while 'til their time is up".
"They're a constant in your life".
In death, they can also compel a comforting observance of ritual.
"The Asians have a custom - they plant something over the grave. They say the spirit goes into the plant".
"Mine died at the vet - I regret not bringing him home".
"The kids didn't like our first dog. There were no tears when he died, but we still had to make a cross and bury him. It was a life experience".
"When our dog died we couldn't put it in the bin - we had to give it a proper funeral".
- they can enrich and protect family life; they can act as a reason to talk to strangers and as a point of contact with neighbours; they can also represent neutral territory in family disputes and divorces.
"We all know each other's cats and dogs like we know each other's children".
"When I first moved here Ralph was on a diet - he'd do the rounds when the other dogs were eating, with a pathetic look on his face and every one of the neighbours would feed him his favourite was the Spanish man down the road. He'd go there for tacos".
"My son says animals bring a family together. My eldest feeds the dog and my youngest feeds the cat. They come from anywhere when the right person calls them".
"When our family was breaking up, a safe topic was the dogs. When my ex-husband rings up I ask him about the dogs. It's safe, neutral territory".
"When we broke up my husband said 'I'm having the dog.' When the dog got old he was always talking to Sydney Uni vet service about him. It was to his credit, he could relate to animals better".
An owner can choose, change and reject a pet, in a way which is difficult, if not impossible (and perhaps frowned upon), with humans. Nor do pets answer back or flout the authority of owners in quite the same deliberate way as people may do. This is not to say that pets are always controllable, rather their motives for being out of control do not usually involve the same sort of struggle, and owners will usually win in the end.
"It's the power you have over an animal - the children answer you back".
"I hate my dog weeing all over my tyres, so I disciplined him every time he did it and now all I've got to do is point to the wheels and he's off into his kennel!".
"They're like a child but you can control them, they're more obedient".
"I'd rather get a dog as a puppy because that way I can drum into it what I want".
Pets, therefore could be said to deliver on some of the most fundamental human needs - companionship, reliability, stress release and order, all of which are basic to human happiness and much needed in our increasingly unreliable and rapidly changing world.