“One day it occurred to me that the warm, squeaky, smelly things squirming around next to me were my brothers and sister. I was very disappointed.”

The first lines of A Dog’s Purpose begin a cycle that takes place three more times in the novel. The protagonist, a dog, is born a total of four times, and each time he becomes conscious of his circumstances, his experience centers on the presence of other dogs, his siblings, and his current birth mother. This scene acts as an anchor, orienting both the protagonist and the reader as the protagonist becomes different dogs with memories of his previous lives. In this instance, the dog is called Toby (referred to as Bailey for the rest of the Important Quotes), and he is disappointed because his mother is not present to provide a feeding, showcasing a dog’s constant drive to be warm and fed.

“Then, astoundingly, the gate clicked open. My mother had opened the gate! She dropped her paws to the ground and shouldered the gate aside, sniffing cautiously at the air on the other side of the fence.”

Bailey learns many lessons throughout his several lives. This quote is one of the lessons Bailey learns, watching his mother use her mouth and bodyweight to open a gate meant to be used only by the humans. Bailey will use this skill himself multiple times throughout the novel. This moment is also pivotal for Bailey because it forces him to choose between the safe, comfortable life he is enjoying among humans and his loyalty to the mother who taught him to be afraid of humans.