Our dogs will love and admire the meanest of us, and feed our colossal vanity with their uncritical homage.

Repplier wryly observes that a dog’s devotion is indiscriminate: it is offered not as a moral judgment but as a constant, affectionate allegiance. That very constancy can flatter human beings, especially those least deserving of admiration, because it supplies praise without scrutiny. The phrase “colossal vanity” suggests that people are eager for affirmation and will readily accept it even when it is unearned; the dog becomes a mirror that reflects back an idealized self. The line is both a tribute to canine loyalty and a satire of human self-regard, warning that unconditional adoration can encourage complacency rather than self-knowledge.