London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Pope Scolds Couples Who Choose Pets Over Kids

Pope Scolds Couples Who Choose Pets Over Kids

Expressing concern about global birthrates, Francis said such couples were acting in a selfish way that diminished humanity.

Pope Francis has not been reluctant to offer his views on polarizing subjects, but on Wednesday, he waded into an issue involving two subjects on which consensus is almost impossible to find.

Pets and kids.

Speaking on parenthood during a general audience at the Vatican on Wednesday, Francis bemoaned the global decline in birthrates — what he described as a “demographic winter” — and was bluntly critical of couples who prefer to have pets rather than children.

People who have pets instead of children, the pope said, were being selfish, exhibiting a “denial of fatherhood or motherhood” that “diminishes us, it takes away our humanity.”

“Yes, dogs and cats take the place of children,” Francis said, laying out the harsh consequences of a childless future, including the inevitable drying up of pension plans. “Yes, it’s funny, I understand, but it is the reality.”

The reaction on social media was heated.

Several people pointed out that the pope had made a deliberate decision not to have children and should have little say on the matter. “Is the Vatican gonna pay daycare?” one Twitter user asked.

Others noted that Francis was failing to live up to his namesake, Francis of Assisi, patron saint of animals.

The pope had already signaled his kids-over-kibbles stance in a 2014 interview with the Rome daily Il Messaggero. When asked whether some in society valued pets more than children, he said that it was a reality that reflected a “sign of cultural degeneration.”

“That’s because an emotional relationship with animals is easier, more programmable,” he said at the time. He added, “Having a child is something complex.”

Pope Francis is not known to have kept pets in his apartment at a Vatican guesthouse. His predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, on the other hand, was such an avowed cat person that there is even a children’s book — “Joseph and Chico: The Life of Pope Benedict XVI as Told by a Cat” — told from a feline perspective. Another children’s book muses on a goldfish’s fondness for Benedict.

Agostino Paravicini Bagliani, the author of “Il Bestiario del Papa” (The Pope’s Bestiary), said that for many centuries popes had used animals, like the dove, “to create and confirm the authority and sovereignty” of the papacy, a reinforcement of its power. It was unclear, however, exactly how many popes had domestic pets, he noted; the most famous is Pope Pius II, who lived during the Renaissance and wrote about his dog, Musetta.

Other Renaissance popes also had pets, notably Paul II, who had a monkey; Sixtus IV, who had an eagle; and Leo X, who had a menagerie of exotic animals, including lions, leopards and bears, Mr. Paravicini Bagliani said.

He also cited a famous photograph of Pius XII with a goldfinch perched on his finger.

Pius VI kept a dog, Diana, at the summer papal residence in Castel Gandolfo.

Francis, too, has demonstrated that he respects and cares for animals.

In his 2015 encyclical on the environment, “Laudato Si’,” or “Praise Be to You. On Care for Our Common Home,” for example, he repeatedly pointed to interconnectedness of humans and all creatures.

“Because all creatures are connected, each must be cherished with love and respect, for all of us as living creatures are dependent on one another,” Francis wrote.

And during his papacy, he’s petted a number of animals, mostly dogs.

On Wednesday, Francis said the world was experiencing “an age of notorious orphanhood” that could be countered, in part, by caring for children, either through adoption or naturally. “It is riskier not to have them,” Francis said. “Think about this, please.”

One animal rights group said it wasn’t an either/or situation.

“It is strange to think that the pope considers love in our lives to be limited in quantity, and that giving it to someone takes it away from others,” said Massimo Comparotto, the president of the Italian branch of the International Organization for the Protection of Animals.

“Perhaps the pontiff is unaware of the enormous sacrifices that volunteers endure” to help save animals, he said in a statement. “Anyone who thinks that life is sacred loves life beyond species,” he said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×