It is no surprise that lesbians love their cats. But apparently, gay men across the country, regardless of their age, love their cats too.

Pussies are the pet of choice for British gay men and lesbians (26%). In second place are dogs (15%), followed by fish (8%) and birds (3%), while for a woman in Yorkshire and Humberside, or a man in Scotland and Wales, the preferred pet is a pony (1%). Some others (5%) go for the exotic – snakes perhaps, spiders maybe and a few burly and hairy bears. But whatever they own, they are the exception: most lesbians and especially gay men don’t have pets at all (57%). This applies especially to London where a staggering 72% of gay men just cannot find the time to look after any kind of animal, apart from that pig that never returns your calls and will sooner or later break your heart.

When something more than a purr and a friendly lick is needed, here come the other friends, the 'human' ones. The survey highlights the importance for gay men and women to have friends of the same sexuality, an obvious way to communicate with people who share the same experiences. Friends are in many cases a chosen family, a micro-community that acts as a reference point, helping to achieve a sense of identity. But the number of homosexual friends is never as high as to suggest a desire for isolation from the straight world. Most respondents have just as many straight friends as gay ones. Only in London do gays and lesbians have more homosexual friends (55%): a reflection of a wider and more varied community.

But when the support needed transcends the physical world, there is always God. Despite the fact that most religions condemn homosexuality, a substantial percentage (39%) of lesbians and gay men believe in God; men in greater numbers than women. And men in their 40s, 50s and 60s are more likely to be believers than younger guys, possibly too preoccupied by worldly matters, and much older gay men, who maybe have come to terms with their mortality. It does not seem to indicate that the need for a higher being is innate in human nature. Some 28% don’t believe in God and a very similar proportion don’t know or are unsure.