Karenna Church ’29 identifies as a proud dog person. She stated, “In my personal experience, [dogs are] more cuddly and more loyal.” Many dog lovers agree. Sam Carlson ‘29 said, “They’re also a lot more playful than cats. They interact with people much more.” Reagan Schoen ‘26 has only ever had dogs, and from her experience, she said, “I like dogs because they rely on you  …  I feel like cats can kind of take care of themselves. And so I like having a relationship with my dogs.” Reliance on creating a stronger relationship is also expressed by Church, who commented, “They’re just so sweet and I think the reason they’re called man’s best friend is because they’re so awesome.” According to a Duke University Research article, they explain the health benefits of dogs in relation to the term “man’s best friend”. Dogs’ emotional impact is widely proven. Charley Bowles ‘26 said, “[Dogs] want to be around humans more, which is a nice quality.” 

Sienna Szerda ‘29, a confident cat person with two cats, explains her preferred qualities of cats rather than dogs: “I feel like they’re more furry, and I feel like they’re better to cuddle with ’cause they’re typically smaller.” Even as a dog person, Bowles stated,  “I honestly think on average, cats are probably cuter.” So, according to Szerda and Bowles, cats are ideal for physical characteristics. Cy Skibell ‘29, a cat person, critiques a typical dog’s characteristics as “Always up in your business, you know? Like they always want attention. But cats are so chill.” A science teacher and a dog person, Kjirsten Walt-Anderson, has never had a cat before. So when asked about cats she notices, “I’ve always had cat-like dogs that are pretty small and cuddly.” This observation reveals the true complexities of this argument, saying that this debate is based on the stereotypical characteristics of each pet and there are outliers, like Ms. Walt-Anderson mentions, such as dog-cats or cat-dogs.