PAWS AND REFLECT | The differences between cats and dogs

The debate over which pet is better, dogs or cats, has been a longstanding one. Pet owners are typically allegiant to one species or the other and boast about their numerous attributes to others who may not share their choice of four-legged companion.

Multi-person households will often have a dog and a cat residing under the same roof, depending on the preference of different family members. No matter where you fall in this fur contest, each species is a domesticated animal that is kept as a pet, and each requires love, affection and daily care.

Like cats and dogs

Here are some interesting differences between cats and dogs that you may not have been aware of:

•Training— Dogs can be trained easily — some more quickly than others — to obey basic commands, such as “sit” and “stay.” Dogs can also learn amusing tricks, such as “shake” or “bang” (where you pretend to shoot at the dog and they play dead).

Cats typically can be difficult to ask them to respond to directives, albeit it can be done if you are persistent.

•Housebreaking — As most cat owners know, cats can be litter box-trained in an instant, providing there is a litter box available. It is merely instinct, and they do not require training to use the litter box.

For dogs, on the other hand, housebreaking can be time-consuming and requires a more hands-on approach. Some dogs take considerably longer to housebreak and may not catch on as fast as you’d prefer.

•Time/attention — If you are a person who is constantly on the go, a cat may be more of a match for your lifestyle. Cats are generally solitary animals and like to spend time alone. They will spend time with you and can become quite attached to their family members, but anyone who has ever owned a cat knows that affections are on their timeframe.

Dogs are historically pack animals and thrive when part of a group. That being said, they can adapt to spending time alone — for instance, if you need to work or have obligations that take you out of the house for extended periods.

Left on their own for too long, however, and dogs become bored and lonely. Since dogs are social creatures, they crave family interaction, playtime and cuddling with their owners at bedtime. If your job or lifestyle takes you away from your canine companion too much of the time, it is recommended that you hire a dog walker or take your dog to a doggie day care to allow them time to interact with other dogs and people in your absence.

•Teeth — A fun tidbit of information that many people may not have known is about your pets’ pearly whites! Dogs typically have 42 teeth, while cats only have 30. Cats’ teeth are sharper to allow them to consume food easily. Dogs’ teeth are larger and blunt, although their jaws are stronger to crush their food.

•Nails — Cats’ nails stay sharp because they retract and are safely hidden inside their toes. They will only extend their claws when defending themselves, hunting, sharpening their claws on scratching posts or playing.

Since cats’ nails are so sharp at all times, it is wise to trim their nails on a regular basis, as they can become embedded in their paw pads if they grow too long, due to their nails being a curved shape.

Dogs’ nails are always extended and become blunt from constant walking on the ground they come in contact with. Dogs’ nails can be more susceptible to breaking or tearing during excessive activity or if they become too long, as they are exposed at all times.

•Fur — When you look at a dog, you can generally tell what breed they are, based on their markings and color, as they are bred specifically to look a certain way, unless they are a cross-breed or a mix. For example, if you were to look at a Labrador, you would know at once because of their short fur and color (black, yellow or brown). You also may be able to determine that a dog is an Afghan because of its beautiful, long, blonde hair, similar to Fabio’s hair.

Cats are different in this aspect, as cats can come in a multitude of colors and markings, due to the fact that they are offspring of different breeds all intermingling, unless they are specifically bred by a breeder.

Cats can come in solid colors (gray, sometimes called blues; black; white; and brown). Cats can also be bi-colored, with two colors being fairly distributed, as either “mittens,” a “bib” or a “tuxedo.”

A lot of people think of a tabby when they think of a cat’s color. “Tabby” is a general term and is the most common color of cat. Tabbies come in many different patterns: tiger tabby (long, narrow stripes across the body like their namesake, a tiger), classic tabby (round bulls-eye swirls on sides and flanks), and spotted tabby (spots on flanks and underbelly).

A not commonly known fact about cats is that tri-colored cats are nearly always female because of the gene composition. Tri-color falls under Calicos (three different color combination of orange, black and white; or dilute calicos, with gray, peach and white) and Tortoiseshell (mainly black and orange, with a swirled brindle pattern).

Regardless of which pet you choose, both species shed hair, unless you adopt a hypoallergenic breed, such as a poodle or poodle-cross, or a Sphinx. Shedding can be annoying at times, especially if you are wearing black or if you have to pull out the vacuum more often to combat fur balls. A great way to help prevent excessive shedding in both pets is to brush them daily to take out some of the undercoat that falls out.

Historical fixtures

Dogs and cats have been around for hundreds of thousands of years and were first domesticated way back Before the Common Era (BCE). Partnerships between dogs and humans were first established for assistance with hunting, herding and protection. In the oldest poems and phrases, dogs have been known as “man’s best friend” and have earned this title due to their faithfulness and loyalty.

It is widely known that cats were worshipped as deities in Egypt: Egyptians were the first to worship cats as gods. A favorite goddess was Bastet, the goddess of cats, home and hearth, women’s secrets and protector against disease and evil spirits. Bastet was typically depicted in statues and hieroglyphics as a woman with a cat’s head or just as a cat.

Cats were also worshipped in Chinese culture as the fertility goddess Li Shou, and as the fertility goddess Freyja, who was worshipped by the Viking, German and Scandinavian cultures; Freyja was pulled by cats in her chariot.

Cats first became domesticated to help rid farms and households of rodents, but they were unfairly depicted in the medieval period and routinely killed because people wrongly thought them to be associated with witchcraft.

Cats were not to be popular pets again until the Victorian era, when the archeological digs in Egypt helped reinstate cats’ reputation. The unearthed cat items sparked interest in Queen Victoria, and she, in turn, brought home two Persian cats. This ignited interest, of course, in the rest of England and America, and people once again brought cats in their own homes.

MEGAN L. FOUCH is the office manager at the Madison Park Veterinary Hospital (www.madisonparkvet.com). To comment on this column, write to MPTimes@nwlink.com.