This is the only group on DU that has unconditional love as its focus.

I think it is also fair to say that anyone who regularly posts in this group knows that love with their own pets.

The love our pets show us, and the love we show them, is quite special. It is unlike anything else. The word pure comes to mind. Speaking for myself, I often wish we could deal with the humans in our lives with the same freely given, unencumbered care we show our pets.

In that spirit, I get a little sad to see some of the recent threads in this group, where interpersonal antipathy seems more the marrow of the thread than a discussion of our pets.

Tolerance for opposing views, and respect for each other, would go a long way to bringing the group back to what it was.

There is simply no way we will all agree on all matters pet. Neither is there much hope that we can change minds in any substantial way, particularly on the bigger issues. For example, while Sparkly and I would never, ever, choose to breed a dog, we have dear friends who do. We discuss our dogs all the time, but have, by some magical, mutual, never verbalized agreement, agreed to disagree agreeably - and largely silently - on that one issue.

Sometimes silence is the best course.