Being in the veterinary profession one must develop an appreciation for all the patients we are called upon to care for. Although there are certain pets I might not choose to have in my own home (snakes come to mind), professionally I recognize that others do find pleasure in the habits of these creatures and find having them as pets quite rewarding. Therefore I welcome the opportunity to apply my training to help any and all animals I am given the chance to treat. This thought process brought me to the age old debate of cats vs dogs. I have no professional opinion on the merits of one over the other; however, there seem to be certain individuals that will staunchly defend the domesticated animal they prefer. It is my belief that much of the debate centers on a lack of understanding from each side, so in an effort to shed light on each of the species I offer the following small nuggets of insight and wisdom.
On Cats
- A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way. -- Mark Twain
- Cats are intended to teach us that not everything in nature has a function. -- Garrison Keillor
- Cats know how we feel. They don't care, but they know.
- How important is freshness in a dry cat food? To a cat, it's very important.
- Never try to outstubborn a cat. - Lazarus Long, Time Enough for Love
- The world is a cat toy.
- To the cat, the experimenter is problematic.
- You can't look at a sleeping cat and be tense. -- Jane Pauley
On Cats and Dogs
- Cats are smarter than dogs. You can't get eight cats to pull a sled through the snow. -- Jeff Valdez
- You own a dog, but you can only feed a cat.
- Dogs come when called. Cats take a message and get back to you.
- The dog needs the high grass so he can hide from the neighborhood cats. -- Men's Health, on how to get out of mowing the lawn
- Women and cats do as they dammed well please, and men and dogs had best learn to live with it.
