I think you’re misunderstanding the nature of my greeting (and, indeed, perhaps, my greeting is not the norm).
When I say “Good morning” to someone, I am not just uttering words. I am actually expressing a hope and wish that they morning that they have is a good one. Perhaps most people don’t view it that way, but I do.
In this light, it’s just as appropriate to wish a good morning to an animal as it is to anyone else. I would like the cat to have a good morning (whatever that means for a cat) just as much as I would want a person to have a good morning.
If you view a greeting as a giving of respect, then perhaps you are right… but that’s not my intention when I say “good morning” or “good Shabbos”… as I try to greet everyone — man and woman, adult and child, Jew and non-Jew.
The Wolf