Laika still greets me at the door with a bit of a dance and sometimes a song. Wonderful beast!

My babies. Skates (Tuxedo) and Bailey (Ginger). Love them just like my kids.

Psoghi giving a neck massage to her "Bestie" Roxy who has since passed away.

If you don't have paternal feelings for your pet, you probably shouldn't have a pet. I love my dog more than 99.5% of the people I have ever met.

Bertie; he's very much my baby:

I wouldn’t call it “paternal,” but I’ve always felt a sense of kinship with many of the animals I encounter. Some have been pets; others “ fellow travelers,” like the three semi-feral cats I inherited from my late sister; or the several raccoons and possums that share my property; and even the varied critters I cross paths with in the wild. Not that I sentimentalize nature, but maybe respond to an “animal-to-animal magnetism!”

My dog IS family.

And my scaled babies (and yes, strangely, ALL bring out my maternal side, to an extent): Seven, Siri, Cool, Cali, and Luna. Luna is Seven's ACTUAL mother. Not that California Kings are particularly parental...

My furred babies: Bailey, Supernova, Jack, Jasper, and Warren

Dogs view us as part of their pack,but Cats think of us as part of their staff,to tend to their needs.....

This sweet girl is the joy of my life (which is why that is also her middle name). I AM her "mama".

She has been my constant companion for the last twelve years. She's also
been with me longer than any man I've ever been in a relationship with, and given me A LOT less aggravation than any of them.

Sometimes pets make better family than humans.

All my critters are my children to me.

I always feel that way. If you don't feel that way, you shouldn't have a pet.

Our pets are part of our families. Of course it’s right and proper to feel paternal/maternal toward them.

Oh for sure! I have 2 human daughters but I absolutely love my furry son as well!

i am biologically unsuited to feel paternal, but i feel maternal! i am the mother of three cats and a dog, and the bubby of two cats.

g