What do Animals get from Humans?

One answer to this question is straightforward: animals benefit from their owners because the owners provide food, shelter, warmth and affection – the animal’s needs and creature comforts are well catered for. The animal will also feel secure in the home but will still have the opportunity to get out and about, to explore, to indulge its curiosity and to make friends in the neighbourhood.

On a deeper level, dogs actually have a psychological need for their owners. Dogs are descended from pack animals and need to be able to recognise a leader. Dogs are quite happy to accept humans in this role. By training his dog the owner establishes his position as leader. Training can also be a very rewarding experience and is vital for the proper foundation of the dog–owner relationship.

Cats and dogs are not natural thinkers, whatever their owners may believe, but they do have enough natural wit to use their owner’s love for them to their best advantage. You can be assured that if your animal is happy and loving, then it is benefiting from your ownership. Cats and dogs in particular can get so well entrenched in some homes that to the outsider it often seems as if they are running the household!