"It's true, you can never eat a pet you name. And anyway, it would be like a ventriloquist eating his dummy"

This quote by Alexander Theroux is a funny way of stressing the value of forming a bond with an animal. By saying that you can never eat a pet you call, Theroux is recommending that once you form a connection with an animal, it is no longer something you can consume. It is a suggestion that animals are living creatures that should be respected and cared for, not treated as a source of food. The contrast to a ventriloquist consuming his dummy is a humorous way of stressing the absurdity of the idea of consuming a pet. It is a reminder that animals are not objects, but living animals that ought to be treated with kindness and respect.