cats/dogs-which is your favorite

So true Mary Beth, so true [img]images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img] !
My mom was a director of animal rescue and volunteer services, and the head big cat keeper at the Montgomery zoo (USA). And whenever somone ran over a wild animal, they’d bring it to the zoo, and we’d end up with it at our house sine injured animals were usually not taken by the zoo unless they were an endangered species or they were in severe pain (i.e : they’d take a deer with internal injuries, but a broken shelled turtle or abandoned possum babies were SOL)
We had squrrels, turtles, dogs, cats, once we had a peregrin falcon in the kitchen and a beaver living in the spare bathroom! Usually ,the animals were re released into the wild, but we kept a few ,like Luca the Akita (we named her that because she was beaten regularly by her former owner, who’s mom brought her to the zoo instead of the animal shelter because she thought Luca was a wolf, not a dog), and a few of the squrrels.
In order, from greatest to least, are my fave pets to have:
1. Cats (brilliant,and less needy if you have a bunch of pets)
2. Rats (laugh if you will, but they are trainable, clean, and affectionate, kind of an inexpensive Ferret lol)
3. Dogs (come on, you know why! [img]images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img] )
4. Possums ( great once they know you, great guard animals if left out of their cage when you go somewhere)
5. snakes (easy to care for, hard to upset, and very very facinating)
6. Birds (messy, but affectionate)
7. Lobsters ( come on, yeah ,the saltwater tank upkeep sucks, but imagine the response when someone sees a live lobster in your house! )
8. fish (great starter pet for kids…impossible to squish [img]images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img] )
9. hamsters (cute, and playfull)
10. hissing cockroaches (see Lobsters for reasons )

btw Mary Beth, I wish I had had a deer or racoon [img]images/smiles/icon_sad.gif[/img] Deer were done at the zoo, and the one kind of animal that dad wouldn’t allow were racoons , you were so lucky!!
Oh, one more thing, we named the Peregrin Falcon Pippin….we were Delikevar [img]images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img] (let’s see how many folks know what THAT is…lol)

[ 08-04-2002: Message edited by: Nirvanah Rimmer ]

Rofl Tish.

I like Dogs, hate domesticated cats. Like wild cats particularly Tigers and Panthers. Lions are cool too especially their society.

Komodo Dragons are one of my favorites too.

I own 2 Siberian Huskies(14, 13 years), 1 recently deceased [img]images/smiles/icon_sad.gif[/img] and a Beagle(12 years) [img]images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

I’m a dogs person. Currently have a Rotti/Alsatian cross..she’s got that kind of face and personality that makes 99.9% of people fall in love with her. I would certainly be lost without her, with the other half being away so much. besides, who else would guard me from all those nasty pussy cats & ice-cream vans??? [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

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[img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] btw Mary Beth, I wish I had had a deer or racoon Deer were done at the zoo, and the one kind of animal that dad wouldn’t allow were racoons , you were so lucky!!
Oh, one more thing, we named the Peregrin Falcon Pippin….we were Delikevar (let’s see how many folks know what THAT is…lol)

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Nirvanah i feel sure that the reason you weren’t allowed racoons was because they tend to get mean when they get older. we only got to keep them for a few months then we reintroduced then to the wild. this was 25 years ago and i don’t remember how exactly we did that. but all of the wild animals we raised we did the same thing. although i think we may have possibly given the fauns to a reputable petting zoo. where they would live very long lives and bring joy to many children who may never see a deer up close. one of my most upsetting childhood memories was when i was 10-12 years old and i went to the Iowa State Fair. i went to the petting zoo they had and the animals were so skinny their ribs and hip bones were sticking out very clearly. even as a young child i knew this was wrong. when i came home i told my mother and grandmother and they called someone and the owner of the petting zoo was fined and all of the animals were immediately taken away from him.
it is my opinion that one of the best ways to judge a society is by the way they treat the animals in their lives. pets and wildlife! [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[ 12-04-2002: Message edited by: mary beth ]

I’d love to have a Llama, but I’ve heard that if they get angry they spit at you…which is a shame coz they look so cuddly.
Once had a cat that was so intelligent, she acted more like a dog, you’d call her to sit on your lap and she would, never had another cat like her, her name was tishy, beautiful black cat with the cutest face, we absolutely adored her.
But now I prefer dogs, my grandmother died recently and as I lived with her for fifteen years (she had various dogs), I was left with a beautiful border collie called Ricky (although I called him wolfie!!!), he was fifteen and really sprightly.
But as i had never really looked after a pet by myself I did not know how to take care of him properly, I was out of work for a year and had barely enough money or food for myself let alone Ricky, and he began to get painfully thin, then one day he got out of the back garden and was picked up by a dog warden.
He was taken to a sanctuary and was eventually given a new home, at the time I was heartbroken, but soon began to realise that he was better off there than with me, but I feel so guilty because I promised my Gran that I would look after him if anything happened to her…and I failed.
It’s one thing that I will always look back on and regret.
Squishy [img]images/smiles/icon_wink.gif[/img] [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [img]images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img]

As an owner, I prefer cats because my schedule is so hectic and there is only me, I can’t properly take care of a dog. Growing up, however, my family had dogs because my mother hated cats. We had a dog named Benji who was 1/2 German Shephard 1/2 (sp) bisinji with curly tail and all. He didn’t bark much; but boy could he run!!!! Sometimes, he got loose and we would have to chase him all over town with the car; we clocked at about 40mph at times.
We had a rooster one time; because we found a chick by the side of the road; I guess it fell off a chick truck; and he was the cutest little furrball you ever saw. My brother named him Tyrannosaurus Rex. Rex was with us until he grew feathers and then he got quite vicious and we had to take him to my aunt’s farm where I’m sure he became Sunday dinner. He was too vicious to last long in the hen house. [img]images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img]

Cats, of course! Others may disagree on this, but I for one, cannot help but admire an animal that takes advantage of a supposedly ‘superior’ and ‘more highly evolved’ creature through being given free shelter, free food and attention and is rewarded with more free shelter, free food and attention. I mean, the way they act, it’s practically human, innit?

Yep, you gotta love cats! Besides, their lives are also quite exciting, too. When was the last time you saw an award winning West End musical about dogs, hmm? See, I told you.

In short, when it comes to the evolutionary scale, cats deserve the top rung of the ladder of life [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] .

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Originally posted by Jessi 15:
I’m a cat person. I also think that meerkats are cute. [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

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I had a funny day at the zoo with our 2 year old who runs excitedly over to a fence yelling “Mum, Dad, LOOK MEERKATS !!!” And I heard some lady next to me say “I thought they were rats” [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]