Dogs - A Hungarian's Best Friend

We have observed that many people here have dogs. More than in any community we have lived in. When I walk to school each morning, I pass five or six people who are out walking their dogs. Some people have two, even three dogs. Keep in mind that our neighborhood is all high-rise apartments. In a recent lesson on pets with 11th graders, I asked why so many people in Hungary have dogs. One answer: "Many people live alone and need to have a pet for a companion." Another answer was perhaps more accurate: "Many people in Hungary are depressed and keep pets so they can be happy." Dogs here are also very polite; they are so accustomed to meeting people on the sidewalks, they just walk on by, not stopping to sniff me or tug on the leash. So, maybe there aren't more dogs, but because these are apartment dogs, they don't have back yards to run in.