[The book is snapped closed.]

The planet is called 'No Man's Land'. It is little more than a global desert. There isn't enough food and water to sustain most Earth animals larger than a cat. Cats are ubiquitous. Dogs however are rare, and as I understand it, something of a status symbol.

[If you had the resources to throw away on having a dog, then you had a lot of resources.]

Things seem far more abundant here.