Couldn't tell if BBC interview was sad or hilarious

I caught a snippet of a BBC interview where someone was talking about getting forgetful in his old age and how the saddest part is when he forgets his own dog's name and has to call to it with a generic "here...doggy", and he could just sense how the dog was embarrassed on his behalf.

I laughed out loud, but didn't get to hear the rest of the interview so I don't know if it was supposed to be funny or if I'm just a terrible human being.