Watching police dogs on BBC Crimewatch reminds me - in my first day in Belmarsh, waiting overnight in a cell before being allocated to my wing, next day in comes a police officer handler with his drug sniffer dog which happened to be an Alsatian, which immediately bounded up to me and licked my face. The handler roared with laughter. "He knows someone who loves dogs" he said. Handler sat down, pushed the cell door to and pretended the dog was searching the cell whilst I played with him for five minutes (I know exactly where to scratch and pet an Alsatian, having lived with them since birth). A couple of years later, in HMP Maidstone, I was walking to work (the Print Shop) with a couple of dozen other prisoners, and there was a new officer with a huge dog allocated to the Print Shop entry. Suddenly the dog pulled his leash out of the officer's hands and rushed towards us. The other prisoners scattered like chickens. I of course stood still - the dog rushed up to me, put his paws on my shoulders and licked my face. It was the same dog! And the same handler who panting behind him said "Sorry JK - he recognised you and I couldn't hold him"! Me and dogs! What's he like?

It's a fact that animals can sense kindness and empathy toward them. Dogs and cats especially. Elephants are amazing. They have a sixth sense which can identify any human threatening danger from a mile off. A tremendous sense of awareness, memory and empathy. If you don't intend harm they will leave you alone. They have even been known to protect good people who might be in danger from other predators.