Spending money on pets

In Western countries people spend a lot of money on their pets. They buy special food for their cats and dogs, buy them toys and often pay high fees for medical treatment. Some people think this a waste of time, and argue that pets are dirty and dangerous.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of having a pet? Do people spend too much money on pets?
Give reasons for your answer.

In many Western homes people keep a dog or cat or some other kind of pet. While this does involves some expense in terms of good food and medical treatment, there are still many advantages to keeping a pet.

First of all, pets are good companions. This is especially important for people who live alone and for older people who do not go out much. Some pets can also help to protect the house from thieves.
Secondly, dogs and cats like to play and can give hours of amusement to children and adults. Taking care of an animal also helps children to develop responsible attitudes and to learn about nature.
Finally, I think that the actual expense of keeping an animal is not that high, and they can eat the leftovers of family meals.

However, some people claim pets are dirty. I don't think this is altogether true. Responsible pet owners keep their pets clean and healthy so they do not smell bad. People also say that certain pets, like large dogs, can be dangerous. There have been cases of dogs attacking and seriously injuring small children. Nevertheless, these cases are uncommon and are the result of bad owners. These people either don't train their dogs properly or actually encourage them to be aggressive. So, the problems of pets being unclean or dangerous are in fact the problems of the owners, not the pets themselves.

The sum up, there are more advantages than disadvantages to keeping a pet, especially for lonely people and children. In most cases, therefore, the cost is justified.