There are two kinds of HN comments.
The first is like the one GP made - absolutely sure of themselves and staying with certainty that there are intractable problems with something. On closer inspection you find that they have no personal experience but they’re really smart and can imagine the worst consequences of everything well.
The second is the one I’m replying to. They have first hand experience and give a more balanced take on the situation.
I’m happy that we get to read both kinds of comments.
I've been visiting my friends who have VR, and organised VR mini-parties at my place. The setup goes like this: you show what's in VR on a tv screen, one person plays, and others watch, taking turns. Works extremely well with Beat Saber, FNAF, and some shooters.
I also did social painting in VR, where people took turns drawing in Tilt Brush, and others went in to look at it, adding to it their own stuff.
Another case I saw is adding VR setup to a bigger party, which works very well with Beat Saber.
VR can be just as social as couch-multiplayer on consoles, or Karaoke. If not more.
As for pets, it depends on a pet, but with 2-3 dogs I saw there were no issues whatsoever.