Anonymous wrote:Oh my god. I can't believe how many of you nutsos there are that think your pets actually love you. I mean, holy shit.

I wouldn't go this far, but I also have a hard time attributing their actions to love rather than survival instincts. Of course, if I spent some time contemplating the circumstances and relationships that give rise to human love, then I might come to the same conclusion.

Leave your home for 15 minutes and then tell me your dog doesn't love you when you come back.

Definitely!

There is usually a furry face waiting for me at the door when I come home. There is some keen competition between the two cats to see who can sit next to me on the couch...they do show affection.

I don't know that my dog loves me the way humans love. But there is absolutely zero question in my mind that my dog loves me as fiercely as she can. She is 14 pounds of white fluff and she hugs. That's right - my dog can HUG. You can feel her engaging the muscles in her little legs and her paws digging into your arms. Sometimes while doing that she will give a big relaxing sigh and snuggle in to my embrace (I hug her too). I wish everyone loved the way she does. It's very pure, and she's never ever passive-aggressive.

havent you seen those nature films about elephants morning their dead? lions nuzzling on people they haven't see in years? dogs not leaving the side of a dead owner's grave? mammals are social creatures and loving parents.

The more time you spend with animals, the more they seem to express love. They certainly love each other. They are very good mothers usually. The form companionship bonds both with you and with other animals. Feels like love to me.

My cat says he loves me. But like, he never shows it.

He leaves his crap all over the litter box.
He constantly takes me for granted. It's like he now expects I'm going to be the one to fix breakfast and dinner every night. And it's not like he works. I come home exhausted from a day of work and basically the first question is, "Where the hell is my dinner?"
He doesn't pay attention to the things that are important to me. Case in point, I like my things on the bedside table to be organized a certain way, and I find he constantly has moved things around or just tossed my stuff on the floor.
He doesn't listen to me. I will find he'll just glaze over when I'm talking to him and sometimes will even close his eyes when I'm mid sentence.
Then there is the issue of trust. I'll wake up in the middle of the night and he's nowhere to be found, and he acts like I'm insane when I question him about where he's been.

This thread has been a real eye opener...

Anonymous wrote:Oh my god. I can't believe how many of you nutsos there are that think your pets actually love you. I mean, holy shit.

Do you have pets?

No I don't believe our pets are capable of love.

Oh my god. I can't believe how many of you nutsos there are that think your pets actually love you. I mean, holy shit.

Anonymous wrote:Of course it is. What a ridiculous question. It's no different than asking if other people can feel love the same way you can. Animals communicate their feelings and give signs, just like humans do. They can suffer and feel regret too. Anyone who has a dog who's gotten into the trash can attest to this.

When I took biology in college, the professor insisted that dogs (maybe all animals? Can't remember what she said) ARE NOT capable of experiencing the feeling of love for their owners. She told us that when dogs show signs like wagging their tail or obedience or licking your face or any of the signs we interpret as "love" it's just because they have survival instincts. She went on & on insisting that dogs DO NOT love people and sorry to disappoint you blah blah blah. Everyone thought she was crazy.

My dog loves me. She almost died one time and when the vet brought her back to me after treating her and my dog saw how I was crying and a wreck, you could see it in her eyes like she was trying to tell me she was okay and everything was going to be alright. I will never forget that. She was just staring at me with a look I have never seen before.

Anonymous wrote:When my cat nuzzles his head into my shoulder loudly cooing and purring? I guarantee it. Not to sound like a total crazy cat lady, but it's our morning routine to spend a few minutes cuddling right after I wake up and it's one of the highlights of my day.

My Saturday mornings are the best part of my week - sleep in, then cuddle with my dog for a while before heading downstairs. I know she loves me, and I sure do love her too.

When my cat nuzzles his head into my shoulder loudly cooing and purring? I guarantee it. Not to sound like a total crazy cat lady, but it's our morning routine to spend a few minutes cuddling right after I wake up and it's one of the highlights of my day.

No one ever loved me as much as my cat loved me.

Oh, I miss her.