You are not just bribing the animal to like you, you are bribing it to take an arrow for you. To run in if anything comes at you.

So only really do it if you want this kind of loyalty from an animal. It is very hard to make them move on from a person. It was a tough decision for me [since he doesn't expect to survive], but I knew the hound would help keep away enemies and make it safer for my explorer. If you go home, you might have to take it back with you.