Spiritually speaking, what's the big deal with being an animal?

Why is it so important for some people to separate us from animals? That the mere suggestion that we have -any- relation with animals that have 99% identical DNA to us is appalling? I think it's important for us to recognize that we're a separate species. We live in different societies, have different orders and rules, and all those kinds of things. So we're definitely our own species. (By the by, for people whom I know are going to bring this up, inter-species mating is wrong. Which is why it's important to identify, individually as a species.) I think all species have the need to identify themselves as a species. You don't see badgers waltzing into a fox's den, and expecting everything to be hunky-dorey. But what's the big deal with saying humans are animals? Technically, it's true. Humans are part of the Kingdom Animalia. So if we're not a kind of animal, then what -are- we?