From the Chinese press

Sad tale of house for dog

A micro blog posting by a senior citizen living on his own promising a house as reward for bringing back his pet dog has drawn netizens' attention and triggered heated online discussion. It is not news that modern people treat their pets as family members, but the man's identity as an empty nester makes it seems especially poignant, says an article on rednet.cn. Excerpts:

The son of the old man may have his reasons for not being ale to take care of his father, the dog he gave as gift at least shows he is aware of his father's loneliness and is a way of fulfilling his filial piety in a different way. And the pet has indeed been a good companion.