Did People Own Pets During the Middle Ages?

Animals were everywhere in Medieval life. They were used to pull carts and plough fields, they were milked, sheared, skinned and eaten. But were they ever kept just for the sake of companionship, as we keep them today? We often think of pets as animals that live indoors with us. The word ‘pet’ as describing a sort of companion animal wasn’t even used, in the English language until the 16th century. And then only in the North of England and Scotland. The Oxford English Dictionary definition states that a pet is ‘an animal, a bird, etc. that you have at home for pleasure, rather than one that is kept for work or food’, for the Medievals this wasn’t always the case, as many families who lived in the countryside would have had a byre attached to their living area which they shared with, goats and cattle. Dogs used for hunting often lived indoors as did cats, whose job was to catch mice.
Really an animal only becomes a pet because a human decides it is to be given a name and then kept as one rather than eaten. So for the early Medievals real pets as we think of them today were a rarity. Welcome to Medieval Madness.
0:00 Introduction
1:16 Dogs
3:28 A Man’s Best Friend
4:38 Cats
7:45 A Woman’s Best Friend
9:28 Birds
🎶🎶 Music by CO.AG: / @co.agmusic
Narrated by James Wade
Written by Lisa E Rawcliffe
Edited by James Wade & Adam Longster
Thank you for watching.
DISCLAIMER: All materials in these videos are used for entertainment purposes and fall within the guidelines of fair use. No copyright infringement is intended. If you are, or represent the copyright owner of materials used in this video, and have an issue with the use of said material, please email us at [e-mail]
Copyright © 2022 Top5s All rights reserved. In this video, we've compiled information from a variety of sources, including documentaries, books, and websites, all with the aim of providing an engaging viewing experience. While we strive to ensure accuracy, we acknowledge that there may be variations in the authenticity of the content. We encourage viewers to delve deeper and conduct their own research to corroborate the information presented.

[@laurachapple6795]

Being 'cute but useless' is my cat's entire lifestyle.

[@Tubepoacher]

Fuck it , it MY entire lifestyle

[@thegreygoblin5165]

I mean, they have the cute so that's better than me. I'm just useless

[@daintybeigli]

My cat cornered the ugly and useless market lol

[@LucienSabre]

That’s my dog’s lifestyle too….except my dog is a Bernese Mountain Dog. 😂

[@kristinetaulbut4975]

I love this description

[@Pandaemoni]

My favorite epitaph for a dog, showing that they were often beloved family members, is from a Roman era tomb that was translated into English as: "You who passes on this road, if you happen to notice this monument, please do not laugh, I beg you. Though this is a dog's grave, tears fell for me as the dust was heaped upon me by my master's hand."

[@cyanofelis]

😭💓

[@GodsHound444]

🙁

[@justynetubbs211]

😭😭😭

[@ES11777]

The fact that they had to specifically ask people not to laugh, meant that there were always bad people who didn’t see animals as family members.

[@Pandaemoni]

@@ES11777 That isn't clear because there a number of such burial monuments. The reason he asks them not to laughh, I think, is that ir was considered to be (then as now) a bit too extravagant to build an expensive monument to a dog....a waste of money. The Romans also had flat-nosed, small-limbed, toy dog breeds, breeds too small and with breathing issues similar to modern flat-faced breeds. While such animals might have causght mice or something, they'd be less effective than typical working dogs at that, suggesting they had some aesthetic reasons to breed them that way.

[@naomiskilling1093]

I find it comforting to know that no matter how far you go back in history, people have loved their pets. Romans had tomb stones for their dogs. An Egyptian prince gave his pet cat a funeral fit for a king with a mini sarcophagus and everything. Humans and their animal friends have never changed and that is wonderful.

[@magnusbruce4051]

The inscriptions of some of those Roman tombstones for dogs are heartbreaking. They showed real affection to their dogs just as we still do today.

[@anotheryoutubechannel4732]

:)

[@robertfletcher3421]

Let's go back 26,000 years to Chauvet Cave. There we have the footprints of a child with a dog. It tells all.

[@yager943]

bro, humans used to have wolfs, saberthooths and mammoths as pets circa 50.000-100.000 years. are you still amazed why humans love their pets so much today?

[@naomiskilling1093]

@@yager943 Humans did not keep sabertoothed cats and mammoths as pets. In fact we probably drove both to extinction through hunting.

[@txgunguy2766]

At the 1415 Battle of Agincourt Sir Peers Legh survived the battle because, when he fell wounded, his Mastiff defended him for the rest of the battle. Afterwards she was returned to the family estate and became the foundation of the famous Lyme Hall line of English mastiffs.

[@trevormiles5852]

cool she survived. And great story ( history).

[@txgunguy2766]

@@trevormiles5852 A vast majority of the French knights who participated, "the flower of French nobility", did not.

[@trevormiles5852]

@@txgunguy2766 With so much mayhem easy to believe you. There is a famous Woodcut by Durer Knight , death and the devil with faithful dog alongside .

[@Randomdive]

ChatGPT is skeptical and brings up an interesting point - "it is questionable whether a Mastiff would have been able to protect Sir Piers Legh from the French soldiers for an extended period. Mastiffs are large and powerful dogs, but they are not invincible, and it is unlikely that a single dog could have held off a group of soldiers for an extended period. Additionally, it is unclear how the Mastiff would have known to protect Sir Piers specifically, as opposed to any other wounded soldier on the battlefield." I'll investigate deeper

[@trevormiles5852]

@@acmebrainsurgery As time goes by Acme, stories/legends seem to have a somewhat of a foundation history. But , yes this one is backed up by facts and it is history. From what I understand there is a town in Sussex England in which a black dog was scene materializing on a lightning volt . And this was the start of the C. Doyle s' Hounds of the Baskervilles. ( Sherlock Holmes fame ). History is great.

[@meganrae2508]

So my cat who purrs loudly enough to be heard a room away, diligently keeps our apartment mouse-free, and often acts as a small heater must be worth his (not insignificant) weight in gold 😹

[@Kiefsti]

"not insignificant" 😂

[@hthumbs4072]

So he purrs AND catches mice? Seems like you've got yourself a 3-cow cat (at least according to medieval Ireland anyway)!

[@brianSalem541]

I had a 20 lb. black cat who looked like a panther. I miss him.

[@BGeezy4sheezy]

They’ve found Scandanavian burial mounds where dogs were buried with the same kind of treatment as warriors or nobles. I love hearing about historical dogs. In Ancient Greece they were treated with great respect too. In the Odyssey, the only one who recognizes odysseus on his return was his old dog

[@Fyrdman]

His last.moments with Argos made me cry.

[@jiggling86]

i pretended like my sister was a dog for six years, i taught her how to bark :-)

[@badgoat666]

​@@jiggling86 😂😂😂

[@molybdomancer195]

The cat in my picture is sadly no longer with us. He had the loudest purr and caught rats on more than one occasion as well as lots of mice. He would have been so valuable.

[@Kiefsti]

He looks lovely! I'm sorry for your loss 💜

[@marystone860]

I'm so sorry for your loss! I lost mine a few years back! Me and my late-husband, who's been gone 7 years too, went to Texas to my dad's place for the summer. We couldn't take my cat Pepper with us, so we left her with the same work friend of my late-husband's. We weent down there to try to find another place to live, and maybe work. When we came to Indiana, we learned that she passed away because she missed me so much! We wanted to take her with us, but, we just couldn't! Me and Pepper were close! She would run from one side of our place to the other as fast as she possibly could. Her favorite hanging out spot was the top of the highest cabinet we had! She knew when I didn't feel good and she would hang with me even more. Wouldn't touch human food, not even tuna or milk. Buying food for her was easy, she liked food from the dollar store, and Special Kitty food and treats from Walmart. She loved to catch cockroaches too, lol! Sometimes her loss still hurts. I hope she understood we wanted to take her with us, but, we couldn't! Sorry this went a bit long, but when you shared your story, I shared mine! Oh, she loved to play in the empty pop boxes too! They were definitely family! 🐱🐈🐈‍⬛

[@Dayvit78]

You can go down quite a rabbithole looking at medieval drawings of cats... almost like they never saw a cat before.

[@schoo9256]

i recently found out they were drawn that way to represent demons and the devil

[@SlimbTheSlime]

most animals were drawn awfully. just look at fish or lions for a good laugh.

[@hthumbs4072]

It always cracks me up. Whenever I'm at an old cathedral, a museum, or really anywhere there might be medieval depictions of animals I always try to find them and sneak a picture. Those weird little critters will always make me laugh.

[@badgoat666]

Wait until you see their owls!

[@aaguero]

Their ability to render realistic images was not the best. However, I love medieval art and display it in my home!

[@stumccabe]

The question is easy to answer. In Chaucer's Canterbury Tales the Abess (I think) has a small dog on her lap that she lavishes love upon and feeds it only fine food. That was written in the late 1300s.

[@SteveSmith-zz4ih]

i lost my best buddy to a snake bite recently, he was so loyal and intelligent, i miss him so much, he was a great companion at home and on long walks. Dogs lift your spirits make you laugh & love you unconditionally. Trouble is they are not with us for very long.

[@sineater3919]

Dogs are incapable of feeling love because they cannot experience the emotion of guilt. Dog experts tell us this. Also, they aren't loyal at all. They're sneaky, devious, always stealing from their owners, destroying their property, waiting for them to turn their backs so they can attack their owner's children, running away from their owners, and they'll let burglars in if they're fed a steak. Imagine if a human acted that way. It's amazing to me that people actually believe this "dogs are loyal" nonsense.

[@kimberleysmith818]

I’m so sorry for your lass. Pets truly are family.

[@Kyerishrose]

I’m so sorry to hear about your pup.

[@AutisticAthena]

Dogs have less to learn from the world. They are fairly perfect.

[@txgunguy2766]

Indiana was good dog.

[@Rinace13]

I'm sorry but the best part of this video is you showing and gushing over your sweet old Pepsi!! Had me smiling, thanks for another great informative video! Pepsi definitely deserves 20 kisses from me lol 😁

[@christaylor4477]

My black cat used to sleep on my chest at night. She was small and walked like she owned the place. Always looked like she had black pajamas on from behind. She also "spoke" often. She knew how to give dirty looks when angry as well. If I didn't know better She was the reincarnation of someone. One day she walked off and never returned. I saw a coyote 2 days later at dusk. All the stray cats vanished shortly after. Broke my heart. Love them dearly because ypu.never know when thy may not come home if they go out. RIP Tobey. You are missed dearly

[@grapeshot]

I know my grandfather told me when he was young,the dogs they had weren't really considered pets in the sense of they were considered members of the family. They were mostly kept around to fend off weasels, foxes, bobcats etc. Basically to protect livestock.

[@Kyerishrose]

Was your grandfather on a farm? My great grandpa was a farmer and would agree with your grandfather

[@Kyerishrose]

@@alaindelon5398 hopefully not that far lol😂

[@theodoresmith5272]

It's all about location. Dogs are a working part of a farm. As such, accidents happen and many die so people tended to not get to attached to there dogs. Meanwhile things like falconry, a very expensive pet, also existed. I would say some time like the Victorian Era cities with high density and often poor sanitary conditions plus few parks, pets were not popular. Out in the suburbs and country side manor houses, you do hear of dogs which were often for hunting and protection more then house pets.

[@mysteryuser7062]

@@theodoresmith5272 Actually, the Victorian era gave way to “purebred” dogs. This means that people in Victorian cities very much did keep dogs as pets like we do today, but probably didn’t distinguish them

[@chrisamies2141]

@@mysteryuser7062 but the 19th century is pretty much now by comparison. Urban living, industrial employment, widespread education and literacy, the declining importance of religion, improvements in medicine ... The Middle Ages were very different.

[@Nana-vi4rd]

The Mexican Chihuahua was first bred to catch rats and other critters that lived in holes in the ground and made holes in the floors of homes as well as in the wall. I had one, as well as a cat. And I must say my dog caught every mouse we ever had in our house. The cat laid around and ate.....and wanted to be petted constantly. But my Poco Hombre, that's what I named him caught mice, a rat, scared off stray dogs and cats and barked up a storm scaring off someone who was trying to break into our home. I love cats but I love dogs as well especially Chihuahuas......lol.

[@rachelshaskin2584]

I've never had a Chihuahua. Is it true that they work really well as a burglar alarm?

[@pandemicphilly60]

@@rachelshaskin2584 Yes, yes they do

[@Happy-Honkey]

The sad part is In ancient times, Chihuahuas were commonly raised as food.

[@djquinn11]

@@Happy-Honkey : Do they taste like chicken?

[@randomdudeinyoutube6479]

@@djquinn11 I mean, one way to know

[@elvenkind6072]

Such a lovely, little documentary I've never seen before. It helped a lot to humanize people living a thousand years ago.

[@stephaniecorporandy7018]

I read somewhere that Marie Antoinette had her little dog in her pocket as she was led to the guillotine. It was said that the dog bit the executioner as he moved her body. I don't know if it is true but it's a good story.

[@esteemedmortal5917]

It’s heartening to hear about people gushing about their cats even from many centuries ago ❤️

[@defaultworkouts]

THIS is how crazy cat lady got started...

[@Unpainted_Huffhines]

Fun fact: Cocker and Springer Spaniels started out as the same breed, but diverged when people started breeding the tall ones as Springers, and the short ones as Cockers.

[@ES11777]

Well, they are VERY similar so that makes a lot of sense!

[@andreajanota6258]

My cat growing up was named Daisy. She was my best friend in the world.

[@djspit8929]

And here i was thinking cats were only liked in Egypt back then, nice to know everyone loved the little whisker babies

[@daniellekennedy8118]

We have two cardigan welsh corgis, who are ioan and rowan (17 and 15 years old, respectively). They had a great deal of fun doing agility and treiball in their youth and early old age (lol) and now still bask in cold wet weather (which we call ancestral weather for them). They are completely integrated family members, and I cannot imagine that humans have changed so much in 500-1000 years that there were not pets in the middle ages.

[@allyce8175]

Awww! That's so cute!

[@aliciahowell9617]

I’ve adopted retired racing greyhounds for 23 years. I can say that the way greyhounds are cared for has remained much the same. They are gentle dogs that can be be very sensitive and have sensitive GI systems. Nothing can be more unpleasant than a greyhound with GI upset. Their huge lung capacity from their exaggerated large chest cavity and tiny waist can result in some fierce gas and GI distress. They are extreme athletes today and run shorter distances in the racing arena. Medieval hounds were more hearty and had to be able to run longer distances to keep up with hunters in horseback. I imagine they resembled the Galgo of Spain which is still used in hunting in a similar manner to how they would have been used then. They have almost no body fat so if it’s cold enough for sweater for you, then it is for them too. Thus the statement that they should be inside and on elevated off cold, wet ground. These dogs have an extremely high metabolic rate which results in sleeping 16-18 hours a day waking only to hunt, run, play and eat. Greyhounds & whippets were used for hunting Fox, hares and other small animals thus a well cared for hound resulted in more food for the hunters. Larger hounds like deerhounds, wolfhounds and bigger greyhounds could run down larger prey. There were laws baring non titled people from even owning a greyhound. It was punishable by death to be caught with one. The Plantagenets and Tudors were big greyhound enthusiasts. One of the symbols for The Beaufort line was a white greyhound. Henry VIII had two well known hounds named Cut & Ball who wore jewel encrusted collars, slept in Henry’s bed (he had to pay the laundresses a bonus for the extra laundry work) and were rewards were paid paid out for their return when they wandered off. It was a high honor of court to be the Master of the Hounds and position giving to favorites of the King. Hawking was also a popular activity of nobility and often performed on hunts while coursing hounds.

[@heathermcdougall8023]

My ageing parents adopted an ex=racing greyhound male dog, who had been born and raced in Ireland (tattoo information in his ear). When the dog heard my husband's strong Irish accent , the dog immediately came over and plonked himself on my husbands lap, looking at him with loving big brown eyes, and refused to move, enjoying being spoken gently to, stroked and called a good boy, often. "George" was absolutely lovely, friendly, gentle and and a gorgeous well behaved boy. However, he did need 2 very long walks a day, and was a devil for chasing cats. A close neighbour also has a retired racing greyhound and a Saluki, and they are so well matched and have such fun together, running on our local beach, chasing each other, at top speed, even though they are both no longer young!! The grey hound is a nervous dog, around strangers, but the Saluki is really friendly.

[@badgoat666]

My dad had a friend who kept hawks. A core childhood memory is going out and seeing him work with those and his ferrets. I can see how it would be fascinating if you weren't squeamish. There's something about seeing supremely adapted predators at work.

[@9er..]

This is officially the best medieval history video I have ever seen just because of how you talk about your dog!!!!

[@nygothuey6607]

I watched this while lying in bed with my cat comfortably sleeping on my back. She's my princess and I wub her.

[@janececelia7448]

Medieval lovers of greyhounds are rolling in their graves thinking about how these beautiful animals are treated today for the love of money. I'm pleasantly surprised to learn that these animals were valued, love, cherished, written about and even honored in death. Some people could do with a history lesson on how to treat their pets. Women of nobility had their babies wet nursed by a maid, so little dogs were given to them to lessen their sorrows. Cavalier King Charles spaniels was one such popular breed. They're sweet and made lovely lap dogs for these mothers, who cherished them dearly.

[@dianecostanza]

It sounds like their dogs were treated better than the people who didn’t change the rushes on their own floors for literally years while the dog’s straw is changed often.

[@Anne-pv9cb]

My mind of people. Animals are better people than most people.

[@SakuraAsranArt]

When you can't afford a whole dog so you just get the front half.

[@CrisMind]

I noticed that too XD

[@daneaxe6465]

Some people on a budget shortened the nose but some got drunk before shortening the nose, and some poor dogs lost half their face.

[@khukri_wielderxxx1962]

This is the most wholesome episode of MM yet

[@jpflock1078]

Pepis is forever immortalized through youtube. Thanks for sharing with us!

[@robertfletcher3421]

One story you should have covered is St Hugh 1135 - 1200 bishop of Lincoln. He was befriended by a swan. The swan was devoted to the saint. The Swan was protective should Hugh take a nap.

[@foxtailedcritter]

Middle ages you could own a doggo, cat or horse. Me renting in Australia in the 21 century; "Sorry no pets allowed." Some things were actually better back then.

[@jayaplin1997]

People also worked half as much as they do now..lots were better back then

[@bobpourri9647]

I'm sure humans have always had pets. Especially those with wealth. But even the poor....I'm sure somewhere along the way a kid found a baby rat or mouse and became attached to it. I found a bunch of orphaned Opossums (mother hit by car) when I was a teen and kept them as pets. Dogs as pets are legendary. Also, I am sure the distinction between working animal and pet often became blurred.

[@heathermcdougall8023]

Not in Medieval Europe. People often starved, thus, there would be no food for "pets", unless you were seriously rich.

[@bobpourri9647]

@@heathermcdougall8023 I politely disagree. I think that the draw of pets is too strong for many humans to resist. Sure - If things got really tough you might need to give them up...or eat them...but I bet many a medieval peasant kept a cat or dog, despite logic dictating otherwise.

[@OrNaurItsKat]

@@bobpourri9647 Agree, not to mention pets in history also served valuable purposes beyond just companionship for their owners, dogs were used for hunting and/or guarding homes, and cats were useful for pest control.

[@disunityholychaos7523]

also ancient tribes of south america have pet guinea pigs at first both as food, ceremonial or family pet for kids

[@joywebster2678]

I saw this at work on my friends Canadian farm as a teen. There were dogs that lived in the barn protecting the animals, cats that lived out there too and controlled mice. Me a city girl thought we could go pet them all. My friend had yo explain they weren't pets, they were working animals, not tame. Only her Dad and eldest brother dealt with those dogs and fed them. They had a neutered cat in the farmhouse. So you can separate working beasts from pets.

[@censusgary]

The more I see of people, the more I love animals.

[@Kobanyai_enjoyer]

What about hinting birds? I'm pretty sure many nobles kept falcons for hunting smaller birds or rodents. Would have been cool to learn about that

[@gypsymoth8977]

1 purr = 1.5 cows still seems reasonable.

[@terencegamble4548]

You have a shone a warm light on the relationship between humans and animals. Thank you.

[@TheLinKrust]

Listening to the instructions to care for greyhounds … my greyhound is lying on a pillow bed next to me having just had a snack, pets and being told how handsome he is … apparently not much has changed in 600 years 😅

[@Kyerishrose]

Daisy isn’t useless. She can be a great paperweight if she happens to fall asleep on papers

[@daggy6683]

The running hounds you mentioned for hunting do not use scent to hunt, Italian Greyhounds and Irish wolfhounds are referred to as sighthounds because they chase prey they see visually . These two dog breeds in medieval times would barely resemble what we think of today also unfortunately due to bad breeding

[@daneaxe6465]

I think you could say that about most dog breeds. They started out as helpers performing a specific task (generally speaking) to help people. As society changed to a more urban environment the task performance was less important. So cosmetics grew in desirability and other traits to make them more suitable for urban confinement. The Irish Setter is a good example. As I've heard dog trainers say....the brains were bred out of them.

[@fnansjy456]

The actually irish wolfhound went extinct in the 19th century, the current breed was an attempt to breed it back by using relative breeds , If you want to look at sn oringal one look up Neil O'Neil painting

[@theodoresmith5272]

Greyhounds go back all the way to eygpt.

[@theodoresmith5272]

@@daneaxe6465 there are also the protection and war dog breeds of early times too. Rome had mastiff type dogs they let go groups at the start of battles. They also have found 2000 year old beware of dog signs in front of roman villas

[@ScotchIrishHoundsman]

There were more scenthounds than sighthounds back then. Scenthounds are actually native to Britain. Modern coonhounds are descended from English foxhounds. Foxhounds are descended from a couple different earlier Scenthounds, etc. The furthest back we go is to Rome when Caesar wrote about the Britains and their tribal system. He wrote about their war tactics and spoke of their war hounds. These huge dogs would later split into three types of dog: Mastiff, Great Dane, and scenthounds.

[@beeeeeeeeep836]

I came across your channel a few weeks ago and love your videos !! thank you so much for the quality education content.

[@mirandadepriest9095]

It would be cool to cover pets like bunnies! I remember one princess or another had a bun

[@Drboss-jt8bs]

Another great video thank you so much for all the quality content

[@neilpk70]

Brilliant, informative videos! And just the right length to watch while I eat my lunch.😃

[@alm5992]

I have had so many different animals as pets. They are all cute in their own ways!

[@lefish5277]

Was hoping you’d mention Pangur Ban 😭 yay!

[@starrycrown]

Great program! I love the illustrated manuscripts.

[@grapeshot]

I remember hearing about a certain nunnery. I believe in France it wasn't in the Middle Ages I believe it was in the 17th or 18th century. Well a bunch of these nuns start meowing like cats. Apparently they did this for sometime and didn't stop until they was threatened with being beaten. I guess that's some of that psychosomatic.

[@tracybtchinstructor4197]

That is when they believed cats were Satan walking on earth.

[@Massev6871]

I'm delighted that Pangur Bán got a mention! (Bán, pronounced bawn means white in Irish.) Great video. Thank you!

[@angelawossname]

Me too. Right now my Pangur is curled up next to me. Like his namesake, he's also very good at catching mice. He's the best and smartest pet I have ever had.

[@brianSalem541]

That poem is in How The Irish Saved Civilization!

[@NinjaGrrrl7734]

I actually thought of this channel yesterday, knowing one of your videos was coming today!!!

[@sleepdeprivedjuicebox]

julian of norwich had a cat, it makes me smile to think of her giving her comfort

[@justme8593]

This is actually the most entertaining youtube channel and defo the one of the best narrators

[@kellyshea92]

That faithful dog protecting his master even after death

[@osandoval5335]

This video totally made my day! The intro to your dog Pepsi was brilliant!!

[@rainkeltoia]

Just curious... and I love your content, but wouldn't something like the Pekingese, which predates medieval times, be considered a pet as they were bred as companion dogs? I understand you typically focus on the European medieval ages, so perhaps that's why they weren't considered?

[@solustalechoy7698]

He mentioned that the word pet itself wasn't around, but the concept was probably still understood, just using different terminology, perhaps like 'lapdog'.

[@Suomi91]

Thank you for these amazing videos! History is amazing!!

[@RatzoMcFatso]

Great episode!

[@justme8593]

can you maybe make a video of like what the homes would have in them and the uses of stuff? cos they surely couldn’t have afforded luxuries like dressing gowns or sofas so what did they have? also what would towns look like? where they always built by a river and where towns really far apart? who just started a town, and what buildings made up a town? are they stupid questions lol idk it just interests me sm i can’t imagine how they lived

[@justme8593]

also what the hell did they do in summer cos i can barely survive summer with my luxuries like ice and stuff and didn’t they have to wear loads of layers for modesty? no ice or anything i have no clue how they got through it.

[@Mattstheman333]

A dog won a trial by combat, wow that's awesome

[@melissab8871]

This video made me feel so happy. Thank you :)

[@stephanieblahbiddyblah]

This is the 1st video of yours I've watched and I love it! Tell Pepsi and Daisy hi for me!

[@LynaGalliara]

So happy for you and your love for your beautiful Pepsi, so wonderful she's 16 and looks so happy and healthy. My dog Abu just turned 8. I wish our dogs the best. I've only recently discovered your channel, great work!

[@babshm]

Very good video - informative and funny. Keep it up!

[@salaltschul3604]

Excellent work! I've find the ordinary things people have always done so interesting (I learned a lot about Roman graffiti recently lol). I'm glad to know that we all feel the same about our pets, no matter the era. I can so easily imagine a young lad running about with his dog on his family's farm, or a young noble girl talking to her cat and telling it how sick she is of having to try to learn needlepoint.

[@Magos_Fritz]

It should go without saying that pets where always kept by people. Do some people think humans where an entirely different species simply because the medieval era was a long time ago?

[@outdooradventures8773]

Fantastic stuff, thank you.

[@risingson7773]

Close to 200k subs!!! Congrats!

[@n80b85]

How can I not like the video when you show that cute dog!

[@dan13ljks0n]

A 16 year old cocker/springer is a rarity! Congratulations Pepsi!

[@patrickpierce1635]

I enjoy his narration, beautiful voice and style.

[@gustaftheone9279]

I enjoyed this thoroughly 😊

[@cinemaipswich4636]

For 12,000 years we have kept pups from wolves as an asset while hunting. They were supremely valuable to humanity from that time till now. They could help capture, or point, or retrieve. After all this time, they became our best friend. They patrolled our boundaries, made us safe.

[@p.c.howard7025]

Great video!

[@colejackz]

I love the way you introduced your dog.

[@squid2400]

Looking forward to every video!!

[@blazethealaskanmalamute4633]

My Docker (dachshund/cocker spaniel) used to be a queen’s hot water bottle in her past life😂 always on a lap!

[@SweetChicagoGator]

Sweet sentimental pet history ! 🥰 Monkey pets surprised me ! I didn't think be popular until 400y later?

[@richardhanson7412]

The guy in the thumbnail owned a two-legged dog that didn't have a hindquarter. Quite remarkable, those people in the Middle Ages!

[@jonathanstoutenburg8634]

Let's see. I saw you and your dog Pepsi both today. But then I have been enjoying your brightly delivered history.

[@angstbringer2992]

It just tickles me how we, as a species, have always had a soft spot for cats (and doggos).

[@benisaten]

Having a cat might have helped saved your life from the plague back in the day if you had one.

[@mikaruyami]

I believe the "house of lords" tried to pass law so they could hunt the overpopulation of cats roaming London, believing that the cats were the cause of the plague. Tried, as the house of commons didn't really like the idea of the lords riding on horseback in the streets of London just to kill some moggies.

[@Jeanniebugg]

That's why cats are associated with witches. If you didn't get the plague, you were obviously a witch.

[@bobbun9630]

You might think... But research strongly suggests that the Black Death in Europe mostly spread person-to-person via respiratory droplets (much like COVID), i.e., as pneumonic plague. Rats and their fleas were involved at some point, of course, but once it made the jump to transmission between people cats wouldn't have helped much. It also spread far faster that way, which is a key reason for thinking it was transmitting directly between people.

[@Torania87]

Pepsi is so fricking CUTE!! 😍😍 Thank you for sharing her with us 😊

[@jamiehoward5538]

That's awesome they had a trial by combat and the dog won 🤣

[@DuncanMcTavish]

I recall seeing at least one home in Pompey that has a floor mosaic that is basically a “Beware of dog” sign. It really surprised me to see it.

[@JerryListener]

Great video! How about a video on medieval mercenaries (landsnechk, etc)?

[@nedmccarroll8462]

Very entertaining and educational

[@angelawossname]

My cat is named Pangur. He's totally worth 3 cows. He kills all the mice that get into our chook food and he purrs and makes biscuits on me.

[@Misses-Hippy]

A man who loves his dog is a good man.

[@Misses-Hippy]

Hitler?

[@Mariathinking]

My dog is 15 years old. I love her so much. I hope you get 10 more years with Pepsi at least!

[@RedNightDragon1]

For one king of France, his final words were, "Please take care of the little dogs." It's interesting to know just when brown tabbies with black stripes, like the pet cat I grew up with, first appeared in Britain. Then America, obviously.

[@quixoticcoyoticcannibalystic]

Aweh the kitties in the middle ages.... (Also how did you know I was crying?)

[@marystone860]

Your doggo is SO cute!

[@gildedpeahen876]

Historia Civilis has a great reading of Xenophon writing about dogs, suggesting names and devoting many lines to his rescue hunting girl, Horme

[@angr3819]

Pets weren't usually well fed as they were wanted as ratters, guard dogs and to help with hunting. Unless rich, of course. Too much easy food prevented their natural inclination to earn food by catching or helping to catch it, or having a treat for biting robbers.

[@goatsandroses4258]

"Of smale houndes had she, that she fedde/With rosted flesh, or milk and wastel-breed/But sore weep she if oon of hem were deed/ Or if men smoot it with a yerde smerte/ And al was conscience and tendre herte." Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, The Prologue about the Prioress and her pet dogs.

[@TheCatsofVanRaptor]

I love how KZbin knew that this was really just a cat video I needed to see

[@LmaoMoni]

I have a guard cat! So far he’s fought and won two dog fights to protect me. Unfortunately for the dogs, they were trying to play not fight

[@lukespread]

Ooh, keep that cat!

[@ES11777]

Throw away that cat, there is nothing worse than a cat who is attacking every poor dog in sight. And you, as a responsible cat owner, should not reinforce that behaviour. Not to mention, cat scratches almost always get nastily infected, so a cat scratch to the dog’s eye can cause blindness.

[@LmaoMoni]

@@ES11777 I literally said two. Plus my cat is 17 so no he’s not attacking every dog in sight and I’m not getting rid of my perfectly healthy baby bean. The first fight was with a poorly trained young adult dog(an adult dog with puppy tendencies) and it went after my cat and me thinking it was a game. My cat did not and imo rightly charged and jumped on the dog. The second time was with MY dog who it’s somehow still alive and well. My dog wasn’t obeying the command to stop and heel and continued to jump and play bite(we adopted him as an adolescent so while he was big he was untrained, he kinda still is but he listens to my dad) my cat seeing me being jumped on and bit freaked out and attacked my dog. My dog despite being a big boxer shepherd took it well. He didn’t counter attack nor develop a fear of cats. He just received a consequence for his behavior that was out of my control. The two aren’t besties as they’re ten years apart but my cat is very patience with him and my dog respects his boundaries. So in conclusion go fuck yourself from me and my orange bean.

[@LmaoMoni]

@@lukespread he turned 17 yesterday ❤️

[@lukespread]

@@LmaoMoni I had a cat that reached 21 years. She fell from the roof and had a very serious break to her leg or she would have lived longer. Christa the cat was also a dog chaser. Made a full sized Alsatian go yelping out of the yard at a high rate of speed.

[@dootchan]

A most important video.

[@gooddeal3186]

Good video.

[@dustinkymalainen8756]

It was probably hard to feed a pet when you couldn't even feed your family

[@GeckoHiker]

A pet cat that kept mice out of your grain storage would certainly help you feed your family and entertain your little children while you got critical chores done--like spinning, weaving, sewing, and food preparation.

[@emilybarclay8831]

Back then a dog who brings in food and protects your livestock or a cat that keeps disease-ridden rats out was more valuable than your kid (excluding maybe the eldest son) especially if that kid was a daughter

[@dustinkymalainen8756]

I love animals too guys, but you're describing the medieval version of upper middle class peasants. Extremely impoverished people, which was the majority of the population at the time, don't own grain silos or livestock

[@GeckoHiker]

@@dustinkymalainen8756 The most impoverished peasants had to have stores of grain in their homes. And every little bit counted. I think that peasants would have definitely had cats in their homes for this reason.

[@gumbyc4908]

I have a black cat named Daisy! ✌️ Cheers!