Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened.

The saying suggests that intimacy with animals can awaken capacities in humans—tenderness, responsibility, empathy, and a nonverbal attunement—that may lie dormant in purely human-centered relationships. “Soul” here functions less as a theological claim than as a metaphor for the inner life: the emotional and moral imagination. Loving an animal requires recognizing another being’s needs and individuality without the usual social contracts of language or reciprocity, and that experience can enlarge one’s sense of kinship beyond the human. The quote’s enduring appeal comes from its concise defense of animal companionship as spiritually and ethically formative.

1) "Until one has loved an animal, part of one's soul remains unawakened."
2) "Until one has loved an animal, a part of the soul remains unawakened."