I could never understand all the things I was taught about an animal's place. Not to get into any philosophical discussion, but I always thought that if we humans have souls, why not the animals. Oh, I know what the JWs think about it because I would always get an ear full from my mom about this.
I have had a lot of pets over the years, and some were more special to me than other. They all had their own personalities, some were very nice and loving, while others were total butts, just like people. lol
I just lost my snuggle bunny this past summer. I called him that because he loved to snuggle up when we went to sleep. He was so full of personality, and yes if he didn't like someone, they better have watch out. Fortunately, there were not too many people on his crap list.
Even the wild creatures are full of emotion, this little guy was absolutely petrified.
I had rescued him from my other cat who's one serious hunter. My snuggle bunny
wouldn't even know what to do with this little guy.
My dog (who has since passed away) knew when he did something wrong. He would
always give us this expression, we never had the heart to get onto him after this.