THE PHILOSOPHER'S DOG

Raimond Gaita begins his engaging text with touching and hilarious memories of the remarkable animals he has owned over the years, but goes on from there to consider a selection of ethical questions pertaining to animals. What makes the bond between humans and animals? How can non-vegetarian animal lovers reconcile their priorities? Do animals have feelings that we should respect? (And what about insects?) Gaita, a professor of philosophy at the University of London, writes with an admirable lack of sentimentality about how the love we feel for our pets can be the source of a wise morality that harbors respect for all living things.