Hi Renee,

The claim was that cat people are more "intelligent" than dog people, but it's just as meaningless.

I thought the myth about cat vs. dog intelligence had been debunked; they're different, and that accounts for the rest of the tripe in the "study".

My wife was the same way. When she was growing up, she regarded the family dog as a piece of furniture. Never developed/sought a personal relationship. It wasn't until college (when campus dogs would make their "rounds" in the dorms, spending time in each room/suite) that she began to notice them as anything more. When we got out on our own, we progressed through a varied menagerie as space & landlords allowed—hamsters, cavies, a rabbit (and the odd exotic along the way)... then when we bought our first house, a cat—then a year later a dog. Since becoming more personally involved, she still likes cats (and we care for friends' cats while friends are vacationing)—the major difference she notes now is that she can take the dog(s) for walks, on errands, to classes/events, parties & social gatherings, etc. That, and she says she never again wants another animal that involves litter (which includes rodents).

I used to walk the cat, but have to admit it just wasn't the same. The cat freaked-out at EVERYTHING.

I hear that a lot—mostly from cat people. Yet every cat owner I have ever known says they have to get home because their kitties miss/need them.
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More likely it's the other way around. Cat's aren't "needy" unless they want something—food, affection, attention, sex, to be on the other side of a door, their litterbox cleaned... in which cases they can be needy (and noisy/obnoxious) as heck.

I thought that this had been settled as well. Dogs & cats view the world—and humans—quite differently.


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If all that means dogs are "needy", I guess I'd have to think about whether I want a companion/pet who views me differently—as I am—or as another of its own species. I already have human friends who do that.
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Pets are needy. Humans are needy. All creatures that require any degree of nurturing are needy—except platypodes.

Anyone with (only) a dog could say exactly the same things about dogs, and those of us with both would say the same about both/either. It comes from living with another living creature (and paying a little attention
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Having owned and "studied" both, I find their communicating & relating to each other as/more interesting than their communicating & relating to humans. All species adapt—as their natures allow—to conditions imposed upon them.

Lara, thanks for looking; I couldn't find it either. I agree the "study" is bogus. My guess would be it was conducted as many "college studies" are conducted—a poll/survey garnered by setting up a table in the student union, and asking anyone who is willing to fill out a questionnaire. Many of us know how these polls/studies/surveys can be slanted just by the way questions are constructed/worded—very scientific.
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Doc