We are alone, absolutely alone, on this chance planet, and amid all the forms of life that surround us, not one, excepting the dog, has made an alliance with us. --Maurice Maeterlinc
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Long before written history, certain wild wolves were taken into the caves of our ancestors, bred and trained to serve, to obey, to do our work willingly in return for food, safety and companionship.
Other animals we have penned, caged, yoked, saddled and broken to serve us, but they have no alliance with us. The cat will insinuate itself into our lives and allow us to love, pet and feed it, but it’s mostly on terms laid down by the cat.
Only the dog, of all the forms of life on earth, has formed an alliance with humans.