When you take a walk in any city, you often see a lot of people walking dogs. It is still true that a dog is the most useful and faithful animal in the world, but the reason why people keep a dog has changed. In the old days people used to train dogs to protect(保护) themselves against attacks by other beasts. Later they came to realize that a dog was not only useful for protection but willing to obey his master. For example, when people used dogs for hunting, the dogs would not eat what was caught without permission.
These days people in the city need not protect themselves against attacks from animals. Why do they keep dogs, then? Some people keep dogs to protect themselves from robbery(抢劫). But the most important reason is for companionship. For a child, a dog is a best friend when there are no friends to play with. For young couples, a dog is their child when they have no children. For old couples, a dog is also their child when their natural children have grown up. So the main reason why people keep dogs has changed from protection to friendship.