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Mike Williams asks why do we live with cats and dogs and what does our choice of pet say about us?

Why do we live with cats and dogs? Mike Williams meets cat and dog owners in Kenya and North Wales to find out what the real nature of the relationship with our furry friends is. Where did they come from? Why do we become so attached to non-humans? Can they love us back?

Mike talks to psychologist Sam Gosling who has studied whether there really are cat and dog people. And he questions whether the relationship is really all about fluffy cuteness – could there be a dark side to our keeping of pets? Human geographer Yi Fu Tuan thinks so.

Produced by Lucy Proctor.

(Image of an owner kissing her pet cat. Credit AFP/Getty Images)

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18 minutes

Last on

Mon 6 May 2013 08:32GMT
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service Online

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  • Fri 3 May 2013 18:32GMT
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service Online
  • Sat 4 May 2013 22:32GMT
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service Online
  • Sun 5 May 2013 11:32GMT
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service Online
  • Mon 6 May 2013 01:32GMT
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service Online
  • Mon 6 May 2013 08:32GMT
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service Online

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