I have two jobs.

One involves spending hours in a soundproof box talking to myself and recording the results (voice actor).

The other involves spending hours in my head talking to myself and writing down the results (writer).

Strangely, neither job is particularly conducive to developing an active social life.  This may be the reason why many voice actors, and writers, tend to own pets.

Maybe it’s our need for unconditional love. Perhaps it is the comforting feeling of a small, furry body to keep our lap warm as we edit audio tracks, and/or write.

Maybe it’s because the humans in our lives have reached their limits with our obsession with how words sound.  No sane person wants to spend time with someone who continually asks, “Which sounds better . . .” and then plays two audio takes, or reads out sentences from a work of fiction until the words lose meaning to all concerned.

Enter the need for pets.

You can play an audio file to a pet and ask, “Which sounds better?” until the cows come home. Your pet will enthusiastically respond to the take that you secretly like the best.

Note: It helps to give treats directly before and during playing your favorite version.  This action virtually guarantees your pet’s good taste.

The positive support of a pet is even more vital for a writer working alone on a novel for months at a time. If you read your work aloud to your pet in a high, excited tone, your dog will positively bounce with appreciation for your literary genius. This may be the push you need to finish your manuscript versus throwing it into the fire and starting again.

If your pet is a cat, however, you may expect a more disparaging response to your work. 
As everyone knows, cats only read Jean-Paul Sartre; and you sir/madam, are not he.
No doubt Sartre’s cat only read Voltaire.
Voltaire’s cat only read Aristotle.
And that, dear reader, is why Aristotle was a dog person.*

*You can read historian Arthur Herman’s article that suggests Aristotle was a dog person here.