It's a dog's life for man's best friend

Two dog-related stories appeared online on Monday, showing the two extremes of people's love and hate for the animal.

A university professor in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, spent 100,000 yuan ($13,000) to hold a funeral for his dead pet dog on Sunday. A week earlier, six men bludgeoned a dog to death before its owner's very eyes in a street in Lanzhou, Gansu Province.

Though his unconventional behavior may cause repulsion given the fact that a fair large part of the Chinese population is still poverty stricken and 100,000 yuan would be enough to put dozens of rural children through school, the professor can't be blamed for he did nothing to harm anyone.