Mikey65, you're clearly missing the point. Do you really need an ingratiating subservient drooling pet as an excuse to get off the sofa and go for a walk?
Having a cat around is like having a mate with their own mind, You appreciate them more when they dont HAVE to be dependant on you.
Evolution doesn't have a particular direction, but if it did Cats would have to be the pinnacle of mammalian evolution. Once the true Felidae was on the scene the role of top predator was taken. All other Families within the Carnivora had to then adopt evolutionary strategies that would take them out of direct competition, becoming kind of also-rans.
Some of us are smart enough to admire this. 🙂

Ooh, I dunno, Kipper, if it wasn't for geography I reckon a grizzly bear might have a thing or two to say about your admiration for felines…

In absolute strength terms you may be right, but the evolution of bears, weasels, hyenas, viverrids*, dogs and afew other extant families has been shaped by the fact that they couldn't evolve into successful cat-type predators – that position was filled!
* except the Fossa (Madagascar has no native cats).

A pet that needlessly kills all the wildlife in its vicinity, craps in other people's gardens and remains indifferent to your very existence.

you've not met my cat then.

As the 3 before him all succumbed to motor vehicles, Bobby is an indoor cat. His cr@p is in a self contained box that needs emptying every few days. He doesn't kill any wildlife

and he's such a needy so-and-so that he'll frequently lie on my keyboard to get attention

Ooh, I dunno, Kipper, if it wasn't for geography I reckon a grizzly bear might have a thing or two to say about your admiration for felines…

are you sure about that?

(ok, it's a black bear, not a grizzly, but so what?)

Erk, just had to stop myself from trying to out-Wikipedia you… 😉

Right, erm, let's move on to, er, toothed whales!

EDIT: nice pic there, John, I'd love to know what each animal was thinking!

Thats a quality picture.
Remember also that modern bears are generalists that evolved alongside some huge superpredator cats such as Smilodon, Homotherium, and Pantera leo atrox.
BTW, this is the 'chat' forum 😉

Simple, i did a degree and work really hard so that I don't have to pick up someone elses warm fresh shit!

Wikipedia my arse! I happen to take a bit of a personnal interest in these things! 🙂

BTW there are some large cats that share geographical ranges with the grizzly bear: cougar & bobcat to name but two (we know them as mountain lion and lynx).

If a bear is hunting you, you'll hear it coming; you might not be able to outrun it, but you have a chance. If a cougar is hunting you, you won't.

And in space, no one can hear you scream…

Cats provide dogs with something to chase in the winter off-season.
Cats pee in the house.
YOu are a cat's provider, if not you, then another will do just as well.

Dogs are just so much more the pack animal and thus are more akin to family.
Cats should live in the barns & out-houses, be ferral and catch vermin; they're not really domesticated in the same way as a dog is although I grant you some do a good job of pretending to be man's best friend – but they're not.

Stats are pile of proverbial cr@p. I have always had dogs and I like cats but not as pets? If your irresponsible get a cat, they require less attention/affection. If your responsible get a dog IMO. Dogs are companions, cats are loners.

We're fortunate enough that my wife (who works for herself) only has to work 3 days at fairly short hours, so we have had a dog for the past 4 years. We also have had two different cats over the past 14 years.

Both have their fantastic qualities, and at times both can be complete bastards. The dog thinks he rules the roost but, despite them both getting on really well, the cat gives him a casual smack on the nose when he walks past now and then, just to correct his opinion on the pecking order.

Let them into the garden though and it's fair game. The dog's not caught him yet though

west kipper
appreciate cats when not dependent on humans…..never seen one open a tin of whiskers yet 😆
PS my dog wants a word with you. 😉

Mikey, dont worry, your dog cant read, so it'll not take offence!
But if you were going to bet on which animal would achieve literacy, or learn to open a tin of pet food, few peoples money would be on Mr Woofie 🙂

Cat intelligence is a myth…

read last paragraph in article

That particular study may simply show that cats are less trainable than dogs,
meanwhile, in other news, studies reveal that Pope is Catholic!

The popular myth of cat intelligence was dented last year with the publication of a study showing that they did worse than dogs at a simple reasoning task. Cats presented with two pieces of string, only one of which was attached to a food reward, could not tell which one to pull for their treat.

shock horror fluff based animal brainless :o)

west kipper
That particular study may simply show that cats are less trainable than dogs,
meanwhile, in other news, studies reveal that Pope is Catholic!

Link?

I think it shows that cats aren't as intelligent as dogs. Surely the ability to learn is a sign of intelligence? Especially the ability to learn to feed ones self.

and dogs are as intelligent as ear wax 🙁

This thread has made Katie sad:

the only good dog is a dead dog. Just don't see the point.

the only good dog is a dead dog. Just don't see the point

you are obviously a Nob (capital N)

But where does that leave me?

Cats do have their uses:
Catgut strings are still most commonly preferred in concert-tension pedal/grand and some lever harps due to the fact that they give a richer, darker sound as well as can withstand high tension within low alto, tenor and high-bass ranges. Catgut is still used as a high-performance string in tennis racquets, although it had more popularity in the past and is being displaced by synthetic strings. Other uses of catgut include hanging the weights of clocks and for bow-strings.

ps – that's very unusual. That dog has red eye. Most every dog I know has green eye, westeners have red eye and s.e Asian's have yellow eye. But a dog with red-eye, most unusual.

Always think of that test: put a dog and a cat in a dark car boot. Drive for 2h and open the boot: which one will be happy to see you?

and what's wrong with cat poo in your garden? I never seen so far a cat poo in a plastic bag suspending to a tree or a gate?

LeeW, trying to estimate relative animal intelligence, and devising tests for it is very difficult especially with animals that have no desire to please humans.
Dogs, because of their long history of true domestication do respond very well to such tests, and to give them credit, dogs do seem to understand things that would trouble the smartest cats, such as the concept of 'pointing out' an object.
Both dogs and cats would be outperformed mentally by many members of the crow family, animals that have a very different type of intelligence.
Just to muddy things up though, neither cats, dogs or crows would be able to calculate a route through a maze that a member of the Portia genus of spiders could do with ease.
How does something like that complicate an estimate of brainpower?

…And by the way the story behind the original post is not that cats were smarter than dogs, or the other way round, It was that cat owners were smarter than dog owners…
YA BUNCHA THICKOs! 😀

The thread has evloved into something we can debate.
It's a rather 2D opening gambit, thus the thread has grown into more of a debate cats "V" dogs which makes for a more educated debate.