Let’s do this together

Who needs animal attraction when you can have puppy love?

With the annual slushfest that is Valentine’s fast approaching, new, extremely important, research from Asda Money has been published that reveals we actually prefer our pets to our partners.

It’s no secret that I love my dog Boris and regularly smother him in kisses despite him having breath that smells like the depths of Hell have opened up.

So it comes as no surprise to hear a third of Brits seek comfort from their pets instead of their partners when they feel sad, miss them more when they’re away, and love them enough to give their partners the green-eyed monster.

One in five pet owners even said their cat or dog were better listeners, and no doubt, were a lot less prone to mansplaining.

Given that on average Brits spend around seven hours with their pet every day (or 24 hours in my case – I can’t even go to the loo without being watched), it’s pretty understandable that we’re all getting closer to our pets.

When 2,000 couples with pets were asked what they would do for their furry friend and not for their partner, the top five replies were:

1. Tidy up after them – 26%

2. Cuddle up with them on the sofa – 21%

3. Share food from the plate – 18%

4. Show them off on video calls – 16%

5. Tuck them into bed – 14% Although number four’s a bit unlikely. I mean nobody’s going to be grabbing their husband, holding him up to the screen and saying in baby speak: “Hubby-wubby say woof-woof to all our friendsies!”

So what can we learn from this survey? That we should all try to be more like our pets of course! Clearly if we love our pets more than people, then for Valentine’s this year, we should copy their most endearing traits.

This means listening in silence with only the odd flap of a furry ear to show you’ve understood, having your tongue hang out at the prospect of dry balls for dinner yet again, and fetching slippers without even being tempted to chew them.

Email me at siobhan.mcnally@mirror.co.uk or write to Community Corner, PO Box 791, Winchester SO23 3RP.

Yours, Siobhan