Last week a French girl of 10 was bitten to death by the two dogs of her mother’s boyfriend. Hardly a news item and I know both shit and accidents happen all over our planet. Still, it confirmed my disliking of dogs and preference for cats as domestic pets and it was therefore worth some thoughts.

But aren’t they pretty much the same kind of animal, you may ask? Aren’t people who franticly prefer one or the other just a bit nuts? I mean, both of them are furry, small to not so big, meat eating, domestic pets, right?

Erm, well, let’s look at the way our animal kingdom is structured by genes and evolution to get a definite answer. Both cats and dogs are animals, vertebrates and mammals. Thus far it’s fairly elementary knowledge. Most people are also aware of the fact that both cats and dogs belong to the order of the Carnivora and therefore cats and dogs bear more comparison with each other than with mice, horses or elephants.

But then people usually lose track of the classification. The order of the Carnivora comprises of a lot of families including the Canidae (dogs) and the Felidae (cats), but also for example the Ursidae (bears). According to this classification one could straightforwardly conclude that cats and dogs are just as much related to each other than that they are to a Grizzly bear. And you would think twice about keeping a Grizzly bear as a pet, wouldn’t you?

Thus, no: lovers and haters of either dogs or cats aren’t as wrong as they may seem. Our two favourite pets are really quite different animals.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the differences. I will look beyond the fact that even though both a cat and a dog will attack rabbits, a cat will attack mice and birds, whereas a dog may go for sheep and, indeed, though very rarely, humans. Because their most substantial difference probably concerns the dimension of individualism versus collectivism.

Animals of the dog family usually live in groups, so called packs, while members of the cat family very often live on their own in their territory. Domestic cats are often accused of only doing their own thing, not considering the family they live with. Pet dogs on the other hand are conceived to be loyal and genuine family members. Indeed, the man’s best friend. However, because dogs are genetically built to live in groups, they are very sensitive to social structure and hierarchic changes. The cat on the other hand is its own centre of the universe. It feels no shame or group pressure and always goes its own little way.

Intriguingly, I can see a parallel in the differences there are between different societies. Some cultures are very group focused, while others are built around the individual. During the last few decades Western culture has become more and more individualistic.

Thinking this over, I find it easy to believe that domestic dogs experience an increased level of group friction in their ‘pack’ (the family they live with) these days. While collectivism slowly declines and people have to more and more make their own choices and look after their own sorry asses, don’t we unconsciously expect the same of our pets? While cats may be well-suited for individualised, modern families, the dog might very well panic every now and then because of the unclear hierarchy. This might even be one of the causes that results in such sad news items.

So could it be true? Do dogs have to pay the price for our more and more egocentric society? Are dogs outdated as suitable domestic pets?

I decided to look for some research on this matter and the data mostly confirmed my thoughts. For instance, in the US more cats than dogs (80 million versus 70 million) are held as household pets. Moreover, in the UK the number of cats has increased, though the dog population continues to slowly decline. The cat seems to have become preferred as a household pet.

What a coincidence it is that I, while writing this column, hear a cat hissing and a dog barking outside. When I look through the window I see that it’s my own cat, which is being attacked by an unleashed dog. Ready to run outside to rescue my cat I watch the battle closely. Astonishingly my cat unwaveringly lashes out to its challenger with its claws and eventually chases away the four times bigger animal.

I’m proud of my cat and happy it’s still intact. Still, I feel some pity for the dog. Sure, so many people still have a dog companion in their household. But in the bigger picture the former man’s best friend has surely been defeated.

Column published by Cecile on Monday, October 1st, 2007.

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