Dog Person or Cat Person: Who Would You Vote For?

In September, Macleans columnist Scott Feschuk wrote how it was unfair for Canadians to have to choose between two cat lovers for prime minister with nary a dog lover in sight. Evidently both candidates, Stephen Harper and Michael Inatieff, are well-documented feline aficionados, and Feschuk really wants a dog lover in office. He describes cats as “the perfect animal to own 200 of if you want to be an eccentric shut-in,” and claims that dogs “project an image of vitality and loyalty,” as well as make great companions for photo ops.

I think Feschuk is missing the point. Whether a leader is a dog person or cat person might just say something about his leadership style. While Feschuk states that U.S. presidents tend to be dog owners, he must have forgotten that one of our greatest and most influential presidents in modern times, Bill Clinton, was the proud owner of Socks, the White House cat. Thus, I think that for Feschuk this is less about the leadership styles of dog people versus cat people and more about the fact that he likes dogs better than cats.

At any rate, it’s well-theorized that there are fundamental differences in the personalities of dog people versus those of cat people. Although I don’t think anyone should base their votes on whether a candidate is a cat person or dog person, I do think that animal preference may shed some light on what type of person he or she is and perhaps what type of leadership style we can expect.

For example, during an interview in 2006, Stephen Harper said, “I think people should elect a cat person. If you elect a dog person, you elect someone who wants to be loved. If you elect a cat person, you elect someone who wants to serve.”

Now, I’ve never known a cat who I can say served its owner, but I can see Harper’s point: Dog people want to be loved and tend to follow the pack. Cat people aren’t afraid to do what they think is right, even if it causes the pack to make some noise. And if you’re willing to put up with a howling pack, then you’re probably pretty devoted to serving your people.

I’ve always liked the line from Robert De Niro’s fierce patriarch character in Meet the Parents, after he says that dogs are “emotionally shallow” animals: “You see … a dog is very easy to break, but cats make you work for their affection. They don’t sell out the way dogs do.”

That, in essence, is the fundamental difference between cats and dogs and, I believe, between cat people and dog people. Dog people love everyone and want to make everyone happy. They're very social, they like people and they need a reason not to like someone (and even with good reason not to like someone, they probably won't dislike the person).

Cat people, on the other hand, often wait to see what people are like before deciding whether to trust and befriend them. I also don't think cat people are as disappointed as dog people if someone doesn't like them or disagrees with them. And cat people spend so much time watching that they tend to see beneath the façade people wear. They store information for later, for a time when it might become relevant or useful.

And finally, cat people tend to handle situations calmly, with grace and charm rather than galloping through the house with muddy paws, knocking over the end tables on their way.

Those, however, are my own perceptions about cat people and dog people. If you want to know what the experts say, check out the results of a survey developed by the University of Texas at Austin. To sum it up, dog people are more self-disciplined, outgoing, enthusiastic, energetic, trusting, kind, affectionate and sociable. Cat people are more curious, creative, artistic, independent, willing to try new things, and unconventional in thinking and behavior.

Only 12 percent of survey respondents said they were cat people, while 46 percent said they were dog people. Of the remainder, 28 percent said they were both dog and cat people, and 15 percent said they were neither.

Obviously, both have their good qualities, and as much as I adore my cats, I'm quite fond of several pooches I know. I think Feschuk needs to lighten up on cat people. A photo of a nation’s leader playing fetch in the yard with a dog doesn’t make him a better leader than the leader with his cat curled up on his lap.