Dogs vs. Cats: Which Pet is Best For You?

Which is the better pet?  A dog or a cat?

Well, a lot of it is dependant upon your lifestyle and personality.

If you are a couch potato you wouldn’t want an active dog that will always be standing in front of you staring as if to say, “Come on!!  Let’s go for that walk!!!!  Let’s play ball!  Hey, throw me that Frisbee!!!!”

You would probably be more apt to enjoy a quiet cat that will lie contentedly on your lap and watch Animal Planet with you. 

There are however some areas where dog beat out cats and vice versa.

For example, in the stamina category, did you know that the sled dogs that run the Iditarod sled race in Alaska every year run about 1,100 miles in less than two weeks in temperatures that sometimes go as low as 40 degrees below zero?  The stamina of these dogs is unbelievable!  Cats on the other hand are more sprinters.  Look at the cheetah, the fastest animal on earth in the straight away.  They have been clocked at 75 mph in short bursts.  But for a cat to run the Iditarod?  Never happen.  This one goes to the dogs.

Now agility on the other hand is won by the felines.  Have you ever sat and watched a cat walk along the top of a fence?  They have a great sense of balance.  Cats can fall and land on their feet because they have the ability to twist in midair.  They will turn themselves so that they land in a splayed out position.  There have been documented cases of cats falling more than 10 stories and surviving with little injury.  A dog on the other hand does not have this ability and would not survive a fall of even only three stories.

For a hard worker nothing can beat a dog.  They can do just about anything.  They can guide the blind, chase down criminals, sniff out drugs or explosives, detect termites, alert to an oncoming seizure, pick up items for their handicapped owner, answer the doorbell, turn on and off light switches, comfort the sick in hospitals, listen to children read to them at libraries, perform in movies and television, etc, etc, etc,….  Cats can be wonderful companions and can offer their owners much but they in general do not have the same work drive that dogs do nor do they have the versatility.  In fact, most cats spend the majority of their days, sleeping.

Which live longer?  Dogs or cats?  Well, from personal experience I can tell you cats win this hands down.  We have had three cats in our house over the years.  Rebel lived to be 16 years old, Gizmo was two months past 17 years and our last cat, Dinky, lived past 20 years.  Our dogs on the other hand, passed at 6 years 9 months. 9 and a half years, and 10 years two months.  The larger the breed of dog, the shorter it’s lifespan usually is.  Giant breeds are old at 7 or 8 years.  A little poodle might live to be 16 years.  And remember with cats, indoor cats live longer than their outdoor relatives.  Our cats never went outside unless in a carrier.

If you want an independent pet, one you won’t have to give loads of attention to, a cat is your best bet.  Dogs need a lot of human attention.  They have bred over the centuries to work with man.  They are pack animals and need that interaction with members of their family.  Cats?  They generally like to be left alone to their own devices.  Fill their food and water dish, clean their litter box and they are happy. 

For trainability it’s the dog.  It has been scientifically tested and shown that the average dog can learn up to 165 words which is equivalent to the vocabulary of a 2-year-old child.  Dogs are far easier to train and have the ability to observe and learn from watching human behavior.  Think about how your dog “knows” when you are going out.  He has noticed over time that when you take things out of your closet, grab something off the coat rack, or take your keys from the basket, you will be leaving the house.  Now, if you will be taking him or not, well, that depends on if you grab the collar and leash or not.  Dogs have been taught help law enforcement, work at hospitals, help the handicapped, work search and rescue, work with the military in war zones, and on and on and on.  Cats on the other hand have traditionally been loners so they have not developed the trainability that dogs have.

So what is the consensus?  Well, each animal, the dog or the cat has its own special talents.  You have to decide for yourself which of these talents is what you are looking for.