Two weeks ago I could not find my peg bag. I thought I had lost it—forever. The loss reminded me of when I lost my cat. The loss also reminded me of loss in The Secret Life of Pets (2016, out now on DVD).

This film is about, as the title suggests, the “secret life” of pets, but in the background there floats a theme of loss.

In the film, the pets stumble by accident into the big, wide world and have to find their way back home. One owner is away most of the day so would not know if they have been gone.

All the pets have to do is find their way back home before the owner gets wind of it and is struck down with the horrible feeling that the pets are gone.

The owner would feel terrible that the beloved pets are gone. That’s human. That’s feeling loss at losing something of value.

That is how I felt about losing my handy bag of pegs and my beloved cat, especially the cat. It’s not a traumatic feeling. It is a feeling of angst that permeates the soul because something of use and value is gone.

Pegs are the things I use to hang out my washing. If I lose the pegs, I would have to buy another packet of pegs. The cost is unnecessary.

Losing a pet has more worth put on it than losing pegs. A pet is company in the home. A pet is a living creature. A pet responds back to you. Pets love you back. Owners naturally feel a loss because the bond between human and pet is misplaced.

At arriving home from work, the owner may not have noticed if the pets were gone, but what if the owner did?

I can imagine the joy that pet owners would feel at finding their beloved pet, safe and sound. The heart rejoices.

People who hang their clothes on the line naturally appreciate something that makes their job easier, like pegs. Pegs are great inventions. Owners naturally cherish their animals. They can be great friends. People hate losing these because they are some of the “good things” in life, as the saying goes.

The Secret Life of Pets has been released to DVD in North America on December 6, 2016