Common Sense Media Review
By Jennifer Green
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Endearing animal docu touches on tough topics.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 8+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Pets
What's the Story?
In the documentary PETS, a range of people from diverse backgrounds talk about what animals have meant to them in their lives. The filmmakers travel around the world to find stories of deep connections between humans and animals.
Is It Any Good?
What's not to like about a documentary dedicated to people's love for and connections with their beloved animals? Sure, Pets might overdo the cuteness, with kids weeping over kittens and talking exuberantly about their pets in front of a Tiffany's-blue background. But the in-depth stories, particularly in the second half of the film (right about when your attention might start to drift), are each quite touching in their own way. These range from a North Carolina-based rescue farm, where the owners love their disabled pigs and goats like children, to a survivor of inner-city violence who senses the divine in rescue birds, to an elderly Japanese woman whose dog kept her husband company throughout his Alzheimer's, right up until his death. The research work that must have gone into finding these stories paid off.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the relationships between people and animals depicted in Pets. What were some of the benefits of these relationships for both the humans and animals? What animals have been important in your life, and how have those relationships affected you?
What character strengths are needed to be a good pet owner and why? Which of these qualities did you observe in the people featured in the documentary?
Did you find any parts of the documentary upsetting? If so, which parts and why? Do you think it was important for the film to include these difficult topics when discussing animal welfare and human-animal relationships?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : April 11, 2025
- Director : Bryce Dallas Howard
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Director(s)
- Studio : Disney+
- Genre : Documentary
- Topics : Animals
- Character Strengths : Compassion
- Run time : 79 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Award : Common Sense Selection
- Last updated : September 18, 2025
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