I like my dogs better than I like most people and yes, I’ll use whatever force necessary to defend and protect them.
I know for a fact that dogs have emotions and know and understand love.
When our GSD Max had bloat and we visited him after the surgery, I knew at that very moment, there was more to dogs than most people realize. He was on an emotional rollercoaster that to this day, I simply cannot describe to the fullest.
But they are animals and if the house was on fire I had to make a choice between saving the step kids and saving the pets I would save the step kids no matter how worthless they are they are still human.