Cats or Dogs: Which Pet Reigns Supreme?

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The debate over whether cats or dogs are better continues to evoke strong opinions, with proponents highlighting the distinct traits of each. Dogs are often seen as loyal companions that crave family interaction, while cats are viewed as more independent and sometimes aloof. Many participants shared personal anecdotes, illustrating the affectionate behaviors of their pets, such as a cat that greets its owner at the door or a dog that enjoys playing fetch. The discussion also touched on the amusing behaviors of both animals, such as dogs chasing various creatures and cats displaying hunting instincts. Ultimately, both cats and dogs have unique qualities that make them beloved pets for different reasons.
Care_Bear13
Which is Better: Cats or dogs??

this a veery hard question that's been around for decades...


which is better:
Cats or dogs?



im a dog person my self but i like cats




and y do dogs chase cats??:confused:
 
Physics news on Phys.org
cats rule.
dogs drool.
:smile:
 
Math Is Hard said:
cats rule.
dogs drool.
:smile:
I second that!
 
Care_Bear13 said:
this a veery hard question that's been around for decades...


which is better:
Cats or dogs?



im a dog person my self but i like cats




and y do dogs chase cats??:confused:
Dogs. They actually want to be part of the family.

Cats are almost animated ornaments. They can be interesting to watch, but if they didn't need food, I think they'd prefer not to interact with people at all. (I'd make an exception for our calico - she needs someone to flick paper wads for her to chase and will even bring them back so you can flick it again - I'd almost say she's playing fetch, except the dog is proud of herself when she brings back a ball, while the cat acts more like it's just reloading the pitching machine.)

My dog doesn't chase cats. Mainly because the cats just give my dog a disdainful glare and sit there. Not much fun to chase a cat that won't run. In fact, I'm almost ashamed to admit, but I think my dog might be just a little afraid of our cats. When we first got our dog, she wanted a human between her and the cats and refused to even look at them. She's gotten used to them and even has a little curiosity about them, but she's not about to mess with them.
 
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and fruitbats rock!
 
Benji rocks, cats are unfaithfull; criters.
 
BobG said:
Dogs. They actually want to be part of the family.

A dog will love any good master, but a cat's love must be earned.

Cats are almost animated ornaments. They can be interesting to watch, but if they didn't need food, I think they'd prefer not to interact with people at all.

Cats are independant but they can also be incredibly affectionate. We have one that kisses my wife and I good night [a tooth drag on the head]. We had another that would fall asleep with us while holding my hand with its paws. All but two of nine have been total lovers.

We love dogs as well.
 
Math Is Hard said:
and fruitbats rock!
The fruitbat is part cat.

Cats are EXTREMELY affectionate, my cats all crave love and affection.
 
Ivan Seeking said:
A dog will love any good master, but a cat's love must be earned.
Just like the love of Marge's sisters on the Simpsons has to be earned, right? :smile:

Our cats are evil, mean, and probably smoke cigarettes when we're not home.

That black cat that I took the picture of thinks it owns the furniture in our house. If you push it out of the chair so you can sit down, she'll try to jump back in before you can sit down. About the only time she sits with me is when I do beat the cat into the chair. She's going to sit there one way or the other no matter who she has to associate with.
 
  • #10
Actually, they're all evil. We once caught our dogs sneaking out late at night. They would wait until we were asleep and then sneak past the window so that they could go chase cattle. Someone here at PF once said that his had learned to lift its toenails so that they wouldn't click on the floor when sneaking into steal cat food.

And yes, the cats lie like politicians.
 
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  • #11
BobG said:
Our cats are evil, mean, and probably smoke cigarettes when we're not home.
:smile: :smile:
 
  • #12
I'm more or less a cat person. I seem to have a good rapport with cats, even strange cats. I stayed with the president of my company and their cat eventually came over and sat near me. He said she had never done that to any stranger before, and not even with friends about.

Our male cat, Chester, sleeps by my side at night, and when I am away, I roams the house waiting for me to return. My wife knows when I am about to arrive home, because Chester runs to the door to greet me. Chester gets fairly active between 0500 and 0600, and parades backwards and forwards on my side of the bed meowing. Sometimes he gets insistent and pulls the covers or reaches under the covers with his claws to try and pull me out of bed. I'm not kidding. Our female cat, Misty, usually gets on the bed about that time and she nuzzles my hand or arm. Feeding time is about 0600, which is about the time the dog needs to go outside.

Misty likes back rubs, so she occassionally seeks me out, comes over and stand on her back legs with her front paws on my thy. She holds on with her claws while I give her a vigorous backrub from her neck to her tail. She also like her jowls rubbed too.

One of my older cats, Pepper, used to ride on my shoulders or back. She also slept by my side every night. I still miss her.

Our family also has a dog (female Yorkshire terrier) - we always seem to have a dog. Chester strongly dislikes the dog, but Misty is friendly to the dog, except when dog gets excited and starts licking the cat.
 
  • #13
Care_Bear13 said:
this a veery hard question that's been around for decades... which is better:
Cats or dogs?
im a dog person my self but i like cats

and y do dogs chase cats??:confused:

For the record and in my experience dogs will chase anything, I used to have a dog that would chase horses, nearly got killed by one that kicked at him once, didn't stop him, my current dog chases flies, mice, rabbits, pheasants( so I'm told, once got invited on a pheasant shoot) but not cats, when my cat was still around he ruled his arse, so the dog was scared of him.

Cats and dogs are both equally fantastic for different reasons, most of which people have already said. The perfect animal would be a cog or a dat, loyal, protective, doesn't take s**t from anyone, independant, loving.

Anyone ever seen a cat catch a fly, funniest thing ever, they don't know what to do with it at first(wow I caught one for a change ermm) Then instinct kicks in and they eat it. I saw my dog take one out of mid air on the leap once, truly awesome :biggrin:
 
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  • #14
Schrodinger's Dog said:
Anyone ever seen a cat catch a fly, funniest thing ever, they don't know what to do with it at first(wow I caught one for a change ermm) Then instinct kicks in and they eat it. I saw my dog take one out of mid air on the leap once, truly awesome :biggrin:
Our cats catch moths and other insects. We don't have too many flies, but the moths find a way in.

The dog chases rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks and voles, and now apparently we have a mole in the yard. The dog just goes nuts following the scent trails. Occassionally, the dog catches and kills a chipmunk or voll.

The cats will now and then catch a mouse, which is usually in the fall when they migrate to our garage, or try to. The cats hang out near the places where mice might show up.
 
  • #15
watching cats hunt small vermine is really interesting, they start off totally incompetent but after a while they're so skillful, then they catch their first bird and you know there status as the ultimate small killing machine is unquestioned. It's like watching a nature program, animals are fascinating as well as being great companions. A cats dexterity and speed though is a wonder to behold.

EDIT: also did you know that a cats muscle to bone ratio is the highest of any mammal, which is why they can leap 7ft straight up, especially when chased by a dog :smile:
 
  • #16
Ivan Seeking said:
Actually, they're all evil. We once caught our dogs sneaking out late at night. They would wait until we were asleep and then sneak past the window so that they could go chase cattle.
Late at night? Sounds like they were going cow-tipping!
 
  • #17
Schrodinger's Dog said:
Anyone ever seen a cat catch a fly, funniest thing ever, they don't know what to do with it at first(wow I caught one for a change ermm) Then instinct kicks in and they eat it. I saw my dog take one out of mid air on the leap once, truly awesome :biggrin:

I let flies in the house on purpose to provide a little entertainment for my cats. Chasing flies is something all three of mine enjoy! One of my cats has ocular albinism and can't see very well. She chases the flies by sound...doesn't usually catch one but has fun trying.
 
  • #18
larkspur said:
One of my cats has ocular albinism and can't see very well. She chases the flies by sound...doesn't usually catch one but has fun trying.
Cool. She's hunting "Owl Style". :smile:

http://www.hhmi.org/senses/images/c210_1.gif
In total darkness a barn owl swoops down on a mouse.

Photo: Masakau Konishi, California Institute of Technology
http://www.hhmi.org/senses/c210.html

The ability to identify where sounds are coming from based on auditory cues alone is common to all hearing creatures, but owls—especially barn owls—excel at the task. These birds exhibit such extraordinary sound localization abilities that they are able to hunt in total darkness.
 
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  • #19
Math Is Hard said:
Cool. She's hunting "Owl Style". :smile:

http://www.hhmi.org/senses/images/c210_1.gif
In total darkness a barn owl swoops down on a mouse.

Photo: Masakau Konishi, California Institute of Technology
http://www.hhmi.org/senses/c210.html[/QUOTE

Cool!
She also loves to fetch but she can't find the item thrown unless she hears it hit the wall or floor. She loves the sticky toys that you can get out of a bubble gum machine but they have to be a dark color or she won't be able to find it even if she hears it hit the wall. Her current favorite toy is a sticky snake she bit the head off of. She drags it into the bedroom and leaves it by the bed for me to step on in the middle of the night. :biggrin:
 
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  • #20
wouldnt this be beter as a poll

i, myself like neither (i don't believe we should have pets, they are animals - sposed to be wild), but would rather have a dog, a huge one that would maul things and that, as long as it didnt live inside and was indifferent to me -ie wasnt soft and cudly, but wasnt dangerous to me

cats are just to fury and would set my asthma and exzma and allergy off, so i would just die. i used to own 2 cats, but they went to cat heven once i developed the alergy, it was a big barn somewhere along a back road, like a rescue center or sumthin
 
  • #21
Cool image there.

That's nothing Larkspur my dog leaves an enormous cow femurs at the top of the stairs, I used to think he was trying to kill me but it's where he sleeps. I don't try to make my way to the loo at 2am any more without the light on though, too dangerous, my house is like a mine field of bones and toys. He has 3 Cow femurs on the go ATM.:smile:
 
  • #22
Schrodinger's Dog said:
Cool image there.

That's nothing Larkspur my dog leaves an enormous cow femurs at the top of the stairs, I used to think he was trying to kill me but it's where he sleeps. I don't try to make my way to the loo at 2am any more without the light on though, too dangerous, my house is like a mine field of bones and toys. He has 3 Cow femurs on the go ATM.:smile:
:biggrin: :smile: :smile:
 
  • #23
Math Is Hard said:
Late at night? Sounds like they were going cow-tipping!

They nearly got shot. And they had never let us see them do this. We were convinced that they never left the property.
 
  • #24
Schrodinger's Dog said:
For the record and in my experience dogs will chase anything, I used to have a dog that would chase horses, nearly got killed by one that kicked at him once, didn't stop him, my current dog chases flies, mice, rabbits, pheasants( so I'm told, once got invited on a pheasant shoot) but not cats, when my cat was still around he ruled his arse, so the dog was scared of him.
Dogs react to the motion. If an animal freezes, usually the dog won't chase it. It's when it decides to high-tail it out of there that the dog suddenly lunges for it.

I prefer dogs. They're down-to-earth and actually happy to see you when you come home and want to romp and play. Cats are snobs and are miffed if you expect them to entertain us lesser mortals.
 
  • #25
Dogs have way better social skills!

Well, aside form their occasionally mauling people.
 
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  • #26
Mickey said:
Dogs have way better social skills!

Well, aside form their occasionally mauling people.

My Ragdoll cat is very sociable! She has never met a stranger. She will follow the pest control guy around the house until he stops and speaks to her. When the doorbell rings she comes running to greet the new person at the door. My other two cats are very sweet once they know you are safe.
 
  • #27
There is always a misconception that cats are aloof and not really interested in you or other people but from my experience with them I think this is very unfair. I believe a lot of it is to do with how you think about cats because they're very good at sensing what people are all about as soon as they walk in a room for example. If a cat senses that somebody is not too fond then of course its not going to bother whereas a dog will get excited for almost anybody regardless.

Anyway, my vote is for cats (although I have both a cat and a dog) because they're a lot more interesting and once you work out their body language and can communicate with them well they have a lot of love to offer minus the smelliness and high maintainence of a dog. I guess I'm just lazy :biggrin:
 
  • #28
Always remember cat body language, people who are very scared of cats or dislike them tend to turn their heads or bodies and not to look at them, cats take this as: hello I'm being polite, come over to me if you like, where as people who see a cat and stare directly at it making eye to eye contact, this says to a cat: I am rude and don't have much social grace.

Look at the way cats behave towards each other, the only time they stare at each other or maintain eye contact for more than an instant is when they are about to fight, and they tend to close their eyes at other cats to show they are amenable.

So if you think a cats being mean by bothering a person who seriously dislikes cats, it's not and if you want to approach an unfamilliar cat and get friendly, don't whatever you do maintain extended eye contact, the cat will most likely just run off considering you a threat as you approach, but of course it depends a lot on individual animals, it's a good rule of thumb though.

About 8 years ago when I was doing part time summer postal work I found I could approach most cats by obeying their ettiquette, some I could even pet even though they'd never met me before. I was a regular Dr Dolittle :smile: Dogs on the other hand are simple,they will either bark and growl or be all over strangers depending on their masters reactions, as a defauilt if their master is not present they generally growl and act aggressively, although not always, depends on the breed alot.
 
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  • #29
So true about the cat body language. If you ignore a cat and look askance at it, it is likely to come to you and get acquainted. I found this out the hard way. I was never fond of cats, and since I am somewhat allergic to them, I would try to avoid them, and invariably, they would jump on my lap or rub against me, purring like I was made of catnip. Finally, I figured out that staring them down made them keep their distance, so I could visit my cat-loving friends without getting too itchy.

My sister and brother-in-law had a beautiful Golden Retriever named Ochre (her grandfather had been the Canadian field trials champ), and after they sold off her first litter of pups, she was depressed. My sister got a kitten and they named him Coonie. (Yes he was a Maine Coon cat - so original!) Anyway, Ochre took care of that little fellow like he was her own, shared her food, gave him tongue baths, etc just like the pups. She lugged him around by the head when she wanted to move him, and they always slept together. Even when he was full grown, Al would say "Ochre, where's Coonie?" and she would dash off looking around the house for him and retrieve him, holding his head in her mouth. Coonie always went limp and accepted the transport quietly, but when he was "delivered" to Al, he had to compose himself and groom out some of the dog saliva. Hilarious.
 
  • #30
I find it very hard to compare animals, they have such different mannors and moods. I enjoy the company of both cats and dogs, and respect them for there differences.
 
  • #31
hypatia said:
I find it very hard to compare animals, they have such different mannors and moods. I enjoy the company of both cats and dogs, and respect them for there differences.

That's the right answer.

Now tell us what you really think. :smile:
 
  • #34
No he is called Mufi (witch could loosly be translated from sloven as somehing warm and fluffy:rolleyes: ).
 
  • #35
I am much more fond of cats than dogs. Cats seem to possesses a superior intelligence than dogs. Though, the ferret is my favorite pet.
 
  • #36
It's official (anything with a poll to back it up has to be official, which is the main thing missing from this thread).

In order, the family member other family members feel closest to:

Dog - 94%
Mom - 87%
Cat - 84%
Dad - 74%

And that's why I hate those cats! Surely I should be able to beat out someone on the list!

http://www.pewtrusts.org/pdf/PRC_social_pets_0306.pdf (it's down around page 4 and 5).
 
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  • #37
I love all kinds of animals, but I get no end of emotional awe for seeing-eye dogs, search and rescue dogs, or dogs that sniff out explosives, or drugs, or... cancer!

Is there anything they can't protect us from? :*)
 
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  • #38
The "seeing eye" cat program had to be canceled after numerous instances of people being dragged between fence pickets and up trees, not to mention sudden bursts of speed due to spotting a bird.

Luckily all human volunteers were released with only minor injuries after a brief hospital visit.
 
  • #39
Evo said:
The "seeing eye" cat program had to be canceled after numerous instances of people being dragged between fence pickets and up trees, not to mention sudden bursts of speed due to spotting a bird.

Luckily all human volunteers were released with only minor injuries after a brief hospital visit.
:smile: :smile: :smile:
 
  • #40
Evo said:
The "seeing eye" cat program had to be canceled after numerous instances of people being dragged between fence pickets and up trees, not to mention sudden bursts of speed due to spotting a bird.

Luckily all human volunteers were released with only minor injuries after a brief hospital visit.

LOL :-p
 
  • #41
What about those poor cats that get moulded into new roads and highways with only their eyes sticking out just so we know where the lines are in the dark? :cry:
 
  • #42
Lol!
 
  • #43
Can a cat dance?

http://www.k9-freestylers.com/carolyn.html (to see video, click on "click here", oddly enough)

I rest my case. :smile:
 
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  • #44
BobG said:
Can a cat dance?:
No, but cats direct the dancing of a WHOLE bunch of pink monkeys.
 
  • #45
I go for dogs. They're always fun to have around and they are a lot more affectionate than any cat I've ever had. They're so much easier to train than cats as well.

I also can't abide the cat piss smell. Even when you get a cat to piss outside the smell hangs around in the garden.

Cats are amusing at times though, but I've always seen cats as animals that give false affection. In fact cats remind me of a pompous aristocrat. You know they use you to get what they want and look down on you.

I say all this bad stuff about cats, but I do like cats and have enjoyed having them as pets in the past.
 
  • #46
BobG said:
Can a cat dance?

http://www.k9-freestylers.com/carolyn.html (to see video, click on "click here", oddly enough)

I rest my case. :smile:

Oh, yeah? Take http://www.almostamazing.com/moviekittycatdance.htm" , BobG!

hmmph! :approve:
 
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  • #47
i see people in US seem to like Cats more...
i guess right here in my country cats as pets may be very extremely rare...atleast i haven't seen anyone keeping cats...but dogs are very common as pets here!
 
  • #48
Soilwork said:
I go for dogs. They're always fun to have around and they are a lot more affectionate than any cat I've ever had. They're so much easier to train than cats as well.

I also can't abide the cat piss smell. Even when you get a cat to piss outside the smell hangs around in the garden.

Cats are amusing at times though, but I've always seen cats as animals that give false affection. In fact cats remind me of a pompous aristocrat. You know they use you to get what they want and look down on you.

I say all this bad stuff about cats, but I do like cats and have enjoyed having them as pets in the past.

Only male cats smell like that.
 
  • #49
Soilwork said:
I also can't abide the cat piss smell. Even when you get a cat to piss outside the smell hangs around in the garden.
Well dog urine smells too. At least cats bury their scat, or try to anyways. :rolleyes:
 
  • #50
I think he's referring to the "spraying" that male cats use to mark their territory.
 

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