We have two very large German Shepherds, whose best gift to me was to get me out walking after I was coming back from no white cells and precicous few red ones. These big, strong dogs walked as slowly as I needed to, and when I had to sit down, they stood by to let me hang on to them to pull myself back up. They were as happy as I was when we resumed running. Except when away at school, I have always had pets and I cannot imagine life without them. A cat has come to live with us, so the animals outnumbering the people, we are now officially a zoo.