Ah thank you Frank, thank you. Wrote that better then I could ever have.
I see I am not alone in feeling how important my two companions are to me. My oldest has been with me for almost 10 years, about half of the years I can really remember. In the moment I don't know if I could let her come to harm if I could stop it. My dogs greet and inspect everyone who nears my house (also bark so I know whats up) so the odds of them meeting danger before I is likely. But the rational part of me realizes that the Law views them as property. A hard decision it is.
If someone was harming my dogs outside of my home where I was safe and secure with locks and phones and what not could I prevent myself from running to their aid? Not sure.
That's why I posted this, to see how others felt.
Such as when a younger cop (no picking on LEOs here just an example) shot and killed a dog he claim charged him, video later proved this false. The owner of that dog was given enough money to buy a new pup and the officer was disciplined. I am not sure if she sued for damages or if it was successful. Now I am sure if you saw an LEO in question you might proceed more carefully.
The K9 reference may not be 100% accurate I just used it to illustrate how even the law views them at both ends of the spectrum. Dogs are property unless they are K9 dogs...
This threads off to a good start I hope it keeps going, I like all these other viewpoints.