Dogs or Cats?

[Byteme]

I dislike cats.  In part because of the litter box; "Here honey, lets set up a little cat shit collection station in the kitchen where we prepare meals.  That will allow the animal that scratches up the floor and furniture to ruin yet another area of the house."

[GoCougs]

I dislike cats.  In part because of the litter box; "Here honey, lets set up a little cat shit collection station in the kitchen where we prepare meals.  That will allow the animal that scratches up the floor and furniture to ruin yet another area of the house."

100% guarantee that a litter box in the house is more sanitary than a dog doing its business on the lawn.

[S204STi]

I dislike cats.  In part because of the litter box; "Here honey, lets set up a little cat shit collection station in the kitchen where we prepare meals.  That will allow the animal that scratches up the floor and furniture to ruin yet another area of the house."

100% guarantee that a litter box in the house is more sanitary than a dog doing its business on the lawn.

Maybe so, but it still smells like ass.

[Byteme]

100% guarantee that a litter box in the house is more sanitary than a dog doing its business on the lawn.

"I love the smell of a litter box in the morning.  Smells like cat shit".  With apologies to Robert Duvall.

I don't live on the lawn.   

[ChrisV]

Bah. We put the litter box in the basement, with an automatic air freshener nearby. And then put a cat door in the door to the basement. Took about 10 minutes to teach each cat how to use  the cat door (including the 12 year old foster kitteh), and it's not a problem.

Yeah, I hate cleaning it up, but it only takes a couple minutes, like any other houshold chore.

[Raza]

Can you teach a dog to use a litter box?

[Byteme]

Bah. We put the litter box in the basement, with an automatic air freshener nearby. And then put a cat door in the door to the basement. Took about 10 minutes to teach each cat how to use  the cat door (including the 12 year old foster kitteh), and it's not a problem.

Yeah, I hate cleaning it up, but it only takes a couple minutes, like any other houshold chore.

Bah, no basements in Houston.

When we were dating my wife had two cats that she trained to use the toilet.  Kind of neat, the cats perched on the seat and went in the bowl.  One day I left the bathroom door closed.  The cats looked for the thing that most resembled the toilet and shit in the kitchen sink.

[ChrisV]

Bah, no basements in Houston.

When we were dating my wife had two cats that she trained to use the toilet.  Kind of neat, the cats perched on the seat and went in the bowl.  One day I left the bathroom door closed.  The cats looked for the thing that most resembled the toilet and shit in the kitchen sink.

Hahaha! At least it's easy to clean the sink. teaching them to use teh toilet would be cool, though I'm sure that they'd also tend to sit on the lip and aim off the toilet just as easy.

[FoMoJo]

I dislike cats.  In part because of the litter box; "Here honey, lets set up a little cat shit collection station in the kitchen where we prepare meals.  That will allow the animal that scratches up the floor and furniture to ruin yet another area of the house."

Our cat insists on going outside; even when it's -10C.  She howls at the door until I let her out.  Five minutes later, she's howling outside the door to get back in.

[Byteme]

Hahaha! At least it's easy to clean the sink. teaching them to use teh toilet would be cool, though I'm sure that they'd also tend to sit on the lip and aim off the toilet just as easy.

Nope, you buy a kit that is essentially a plastic pan that fits between the seat and bowl.  You fill it with cat litter and the ct developes the habit of going in the litter.  After a couple of weeks you remove the litter and the cat continues to go in the clear plastic pan.  Finally you remove the pan and the cat habitually goes in the pot.

http://www.toilettrainedcat.com/toilet-train-cat.php

[sportyaccordy]

Nope, you buy a kit that is essentially a plastic pan that fits between the seat and bowl.  You fill it with cat litter and the ct developes the habit of going in the litter.  After a couple of weeks you remove the litter and the cat continues to go in the clear plastic pan.  Finally you remove the pan and the cat habitually goes in the pot.

http://www.toilettrainedcat.com/toilet-train-cat.php

Damn that would be sweet. Our dog is indoor trained but she still goes on the bathroom floor instead of the pad a lot.

[GoCougs]

"I love the smell of a litter box in the morning.  Smells like cat shit".  With apologies to Robert Duvall.

I don't live on the lawn.   

Yeah, but you walk, lie, sit and otherwise use the lawn. And even after cleanup there is remnants left, to be tracked into the house, cars and elsewhere.

[Lebowski]

Dogs are pack animals, and would have lived in caves together, given the chance. Dogs are not solitary, tied up outside away from their pack, animals. Outside dogs are worse off, both mental healthwise, and physical healthwise, and tend to live shorter lives.

+1

Dogs are supposed to live inside, with their "pack".  They get in all sorts of trouble and have shorter lifespans when left outside.


I get Onslaught's complaint about people who treat their dogs like humans, but just because your dog lives indoors (as it should) doesn't mean it's treated like a human.

[saxonyron]

Hey, it worked for Jinxy! I'll try this on Snowy! 

[GoCougs]

Nah, dogs are fundamentally better off when left mostly/entirely outside. There are far too many compromises to a dog's natural state to keep it indoors most of the time; from activity level to cleanliness to diet.

In a modern context; chained in yard, sequestered in a kennel or allowed to run free in the neighborhood is worse than living inside full time. The issue of course is that in these modern times the proper outside life for a dog is very hard to come by; such as a farm.

My dog was mostly an inside dog, but was never happier/healthier when visiting a friend's farm or out camping/hiking for the weekend. I just didn't have the means to do that all the time, and why I would refrain from having a dog if and until my living situation changes dramatically.

But then we have to ask ourselves, If a dog is best outside, why have a dog as a pet? I tend to agree. I think far, far, FAR to much in the country is devoted to pets and dogs. I don't want to divert the thread, but it's become a drug for more than a few people.

[Colonel Cadillac]

Dogs all the way!

However, lately I've been thinking that I want an outdoor cat that I can watch every now and then kill something.

And Dachshunds are the shit


This one wasn't going to pose for the picture

[Onslaught]

You're an idiot, to put it simply. Dogs are pack animals, and would have lived in caves together, given the chance. Dogs are not solitary, tied up outside away from their pack, animals. Outside dogs are worse off, both mental healthwise, and physical healthwise, and tend to live shorter lives.

My dogs sleep in the laundry room. My house won't smell like dogs. If the girlfriend doesn't like that then she can move out and take them with her.

And my dogs that lived outside with their other dog friends in a fenced in 9 acres lived a long, happy life. Probably better than your lap dogs do. They went hunting, and took long walks in the woods every day.

Oh, and you're the idiot. You know nothing about me, my house, land, the kind of dogs I've had or how we live together.

[hotrodalex]

Our cat insists on going outside; even when it's -10C.  She howls at the door until I let her out.  Five minutes later, she's howling outside the door to get back in.

Same with mine. He's crazy. And he will stand at the door a couple minutes later like he thinks the weather changed or something.

And then of course when it's nice out he just wants to sleep. Crazy thing.

[Onslaught]

My dog was mostly an inside dog, but was never happier/healthier when visiting a friend's farm or out camping/hiking for the weekend. I just didn't have the means to do that all the time, and why I would refrain from having a dog if and until my living situation changes dramatically.

Yep, and that's what my dogs had. And any person who thinks they'd been happier or better off in the house don't know dogs.

[sportyaccordy]

Nah, dogs are fundamentally better off when left mostly/entirely outside. There are far too many compromises to a dog's natural state to keep it indoors most of the time; from activity level to cleanliness to diet.

In a modern context; chained in yard, sequestered in a kennel or allowed to run free in the neighborhood is worse than living inside full time. The issue of course is that in these modern times the proper outside life for a dog is very hard to come by; such as a farm.

My dog was mostly an inside dog, but was never happier/healthier when visiting a friend's farm or out camping/hiking for the weekend. I just didn't have the means to do that all the time, and why I would refrain from having a dog if and until my living situation changes dramatically.

But then we have to ask ourselves, If a dog is best outside, why have a dog as a pet? I tend to agree. I think far, far, FAR to much in the country is devoted to pets and dogs. I don't want to divert the thread, but it's become a drug for more than a few people.

Dogs do like to be out running around, but they are pack animals first... as mentioned before, isolating dogs from the "pack" (in this context, keeping them out away from the humans that are supposed to lead them) statistically leads to higher medical and psychological problems for the dog (generally; obviously some breeds are better left outside). Your purely anecdotal, unfounded opinions are of no merit in light of studies done by organizations like the SPCA.... sorry.

If you find dogs in your house gross, fine, but please don't rationalize your own preferences as being indicative of some scientific fact.

[FoMoJo]

Dogs do like to be out running around, but they are pack animals first... as mentioned before, isolating dogs from the "pack" (in this context, keeping them out away from the humans that are supposed to lead them) statistically leads to higher medical and psychological problems for the dog (generally; obviously some breeds are better left outside). Your purely anecdotal, unfounded opinions are of no merit in light of studies done by organizations like the SPCA.... sorry.

If you find dogs in your house gross, fine, but please don't rationalize your own preferences as being indicative of some scientific fact.

Bear in mind that dogs were first bred, from wolves, for a specific purpose; based on the prime natures/instincts of wolves.  In that, they are task oriented, whether for hunting or herding or other jobs for which they were bred.  I suppose that some may have had all their natural instincts bred out of them so that they are content to be confined indoors.  However, I don't really see them as being totally content in that environment.

[Colonel Cadillac]

My old dachshund used to have a blast digging holes, hunting, and running around our 3.5 acres, but he got preyed upon by a Coyote first thing in the morning while he was doing his morning business and we found him about 20 minutes later in the woods. He had holes in his body from the teeth and most likely had internal bleeding and died about 20 minutes later. It was very sad.

Now my dachshunds are cooped up inside all day, everyday and don't get the splendid lifestyle of roaming the property. They got walked about 1.7 miles a day, however. When the weather permits, I let them run around for awhile and keep an eye on them. I wish they could hang out outside more.

[Eye of the Tiger]

Bear in mind that dogs were first bred, from wolves, for a specific purpose; based on the prime natures/instincts of wolves.  In that, they are task oriented, whether for hunting or herding or other jobs for which they were bred.  I suppose that some may have had all their natural instincts bred out of them so that they are content to be confined indoors.  However, I don't really see them as being totally content in that environment.

That is one theory of where domesticated dogs came from. Another theory is that they came from wolves that lived near humans, and some of them began scavenging for food in the large amounts of waste that humans produce. Eventually, the wolves and people became friends and lived happily ever after, etc. It was probably a combination of these two theories that actuslly led to eventual widespread domestication, as I am sure it would be near impossible to take a wild wolf, even as a pup, and train it. Somewhere in there, wolves became friendly to their human food scources, and humans began to see usefullness in the dogwolf scavengers. 

[Payman]

I want a Jack Russell, but they're too energetic for someone who is home two hours a day; too hard to train, too high maintenance, et al.  I've come to the conclusion that I'll never really be able to have a dog.  I can have friends that have dogs though.  That seems to be the best option.

I wouldn't recommend one if you live in an apartment, or if you're gone all day. Other than that, maintenance is nil.

[Raza]

My dog was mostly an inside dog, but was never happier/healthier when visiting a friend's farm or out camping/hiking for the weekend. I just didn't have the means to do that all the time, and why I would refrain from having a dog if and until my living situation changes dramatically.

That's because it gave the dog a chance to get away from you!

[dazzleman]

I think that how well suited dogs are to be indoors vs. outdoors depends upon the breed and situation.

My dog ALWAYS wanted to be with the family, her human pack, and from all appearances, she was very happy as an indoor dog.  She had frequent walks and loved them, but if we put her outside while we were in, she barked and carried on until we brought her in.

I also noticed that dogs become accustomed to comfort and luxury very easily.  My dad's dog was a stray that they took in, and she loves the comfort and luxury of being indoors.

[saxonyron]

There's no question that a lonely life tied to a doghouse is a horrible existence.  I'm no Caesar Milan, but I'm pretty sure of a few things.  Being pack animals, dogs are fairly social and really need some interaction - either animal or human.  They can get it in either form.  My dog gets tons of social interaction with my family, plus Snowy the cat.  Ruby loves being outdoors and since we live in the country, she gets plenty of outdoor time.  My sister's English Lab would be home alone all day and probably miserable, but she brings him to my office (where she works) and he has a hell of a lot of fun as our office mascot.

Basically, IMO, dogs need to be indoor based so they can get their social interaction with their human family.  And they need as much outdoor time as possible so they can get excercise and loosen up their little minds.  An outdoor based dog should really have another dog buddy - maybe in a kennel.  Otherwise, the dog will be one sad puppy.

[Payman]

I think that how well suited dogs are to be indoors vs. outdoors depends upon the breed and situation.

My dog ALWAYS wanted to be with the family, her human pack, and from all appearances, she was very happy as an indoor dog.  She had frequent walks and loved them, but if we put her outside while we were in, she barked and carried on until we brought her in.

I also noticed that dogs become accustomed to comfort and luxury very easily.  My dad's dog was a stray that they took in, and she loves the comfort and luxury of being indoors.

Absolutely. I have a fenced backyard, and my dogs spend several hours a day outside, but they love and appreciate the warmth and security of living indoors.

[Onslaught]

There's no question that a lonely life tied to a doghouse is a horrible existence. 

I don't know very many people who have dogs tied up to a doghouse. I do however know lots of people who put dogs in little crates in the house all day while the master is at work.
That sounds so much better than having a large pin to walk around and a dog house to sleep in.

[Rupert]

Have you ever had a pet?

I remember how my dog used to try to deceive us.  Originally, she used to act really guilty when she had done something wrong, but she figured out that acting guilty gave it away, so she stopped acting guilty until she was actually caught.

She also knew she wasn't allowed on certain furniture, and when we were there, she never got onto it.  But twice, when she thought nobody was home, I caught her on that furniture.  As soon as she saw me, she got off as nonchalantly as possible.

Yep.

Dogs don't know good and bad, just rewards and punishments, etc.