I don't leave my pet in a kennel. I don't leave my pet alone in a crate. She has free reign of the house if we go out to dinner, but if we are going to be gone more than two hours, she gets dropped off with my wife's parents or a family friend. She's a pretty needy dog, and her breed in particular can change if left alone too much.

You don't have to worry about what perverts are out there trying to prey on your pets. Or how to pay for college. Or whether they're going to be successful in life. Whether they're safe hanging out with people you don't know. You don't have to teach your pet how to be a good person.

None of those things are qualifiers for what makes anyone love something. Those are just concerns. For every concern you just listed, there are ones for pets. I have to be careful my dog doesn't eat any chicken or wheat because she's allergic. I worry about her running across the street and getting creamed by a car, etc.

But there's a lifetime full of concern and a level of responsibility that comes with being a parent

All those things come with being a pet owner. More so because a pet will never grow up to feed itself, support itself, etc. Children really don't need their parents for all that long of their life cycle. A pet will always need their owner. Regardless, none of those things qualify loving a pet either.

I LITERALLY don't understand why people think their kids are so special. Not only do I have zero attachment to any child, I feel pretty sure that having one would only annoy me and that would make me a terrible parent. My dog is well trained and just wants to be loved. She's fiercely protective, loyal to a fault and won't force me to pay for her to go to college. She is quite simply, better than a child in every way I can think of.