I’ve always loved pets. I grew up with cats . . . or at least we usually had at least one cat and each summer often a litter of kittens, too. (We always found good homes for the kittens.) When I was a kid, I wanted a dog, too, but my parents said, “No,” for a variety of good—to their minds anyway—reasons. One of the advantages of growing up is that you get to make such choices for yourself. So since I’ve been grown, I’ve always had both, at least one dog and one cat, sometimes more. Right now Ann and I have four pets, two dogs and two cats.