The Winchester Sun: Winchester, KY

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Dogs rule, cats scratch and spit
By Dr. Jeff Castle, DVM
March 20, 2010

Cats may have nine lives, but dogs are still “man’s best friend.”

Once again, just like the nine lives saying, nobody seems to know exactly where the man’s best friend saying originated.

Since last week’s article centered on cats’ specialties, this week’s is devoted to the hierarchy of dogs.

No one ever disputes that dogs are man’s best friend because of their unconditional love and loyalty. Dogs certainly give a lot of themselves and expect very little in return. Generally, dogs simply accept their position in the family and are content with whatever capacity they are expected to fill.

Personally, I think one reason dogs are ranked higher for most men than cats are is the fact that dogs are more domesticated. Domesticated cats still have an instinctive wild side that they frequently are not afraid to show. I know there are plenty of extremely intelligent cats in the world, but I rarely see one scratch at the front door on a regular basis to go potty. I know that is not really fair since keeping cats strictly indoors is a much better way to keep them healthy.

Dogs just seem to better understand the whole concept of living indoors. As a matter of fact, most dogs will go to the back corner of their family’s property to defecate in order to keep their play area clean, which makes it less likely for their owner to step in it.

Dog lovers are just not real big fans of cleaning cat litter boxes. Furthermore, dogs don’t jump up and walk all over the kitchen counters after standing in their urine and feces-soaked indoor sandbox.

Cats understand the sound of the lid being removed from a tin can of wet cat food. They hear the lid pop and come running from the opposite end of the house. But, they don’t seem to understand much of anything else, especially the human language. Or maybe they do and just choose not to pay any attention to what they are being told.

Honestly, our golden retriever, Jazz, acts like she understands everything we tell her. She certainly does not require the typical, stern dog commands. We actually talk in a normal tone of voice and say things like, “go lie down Jazz,” and she minds every time. Even our high spirited Yorkie, Marlo, understands more than an average cat. She even minds the majority of the time. It is painfully obvious when she understands yet decides that she does not have to behave.

Man’s best friend is notorious for entertaining people by performing tricks and athletic stunts such as catching frisbees. But, service dogs have changed so many people’s lives by saving lives, catching criminals, protecting people and assisting the needy. It is astonishing to think about all the different ways that dogs are used to help people.

Dogs are used for many services in the military including sniffing out bombs and surveillance watch. There are countless police dogs used for both tracking criminals and illegal drug search. Search and rescue dogs are responsible for saving lives as well as recovering someone’s deceased loved one. Paraplegic and quadriplegic individuals rely on dogs to help them manage normal daily activities. Seeing eye dogs have been the sight for blind people for a very long time. Have you ever seen a seeing eye cat? Some children with epilepsy even have a dog that will alert an adult prior to the child having a seizure. Most recently, dogs have been found to be able to detect certain cancers in people before any diagnostic tests are able to by scanning the person with their nose.

It is well known that dogs are therapeutic for many different medical conditions and mental disorders. After thinking about all that dogs do, it is easy to see that dogs rule and cats don’t do much more than hiss and spit, after all, I am a man.

But, our daughter has a cat, Sophie, and she thinks Sophie communicates quite well with her. So I guess it is to each, his own — whether the furry love of your life is a feline or man’s best friend, see your local veterinarian as needed to ensure that your pet lives a long, healthy and happy life!

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