I think the issue when it comes how we perceive dogs v. how we perceive cats is that so many of us believe a dog's personality is entirely composed of its relationship to humans; that dogs carry the anxiety of an invalidated identity until they are summarily validated by us

I think this has to do with the fact that dogs were bred to work. They were basically created to fill a need and so what goes into a dog's sense of self is the idea of purpose--even if that purpose is mostly just to be a pet. The dog is literally defined by what we've made it

Meanwhile the perception of cats as capable of building their own personalities, their own selves, without that anxiety or need for a sense of definition related to human invention renders them inscrutable, essentially wild animals to a lot of people.

This is bad for cats

Because it suggests cats don't need validation in order to be self-actualized and while cats were not domesticated like dogs were, they are animals that exist because we willed them to exist and rely on us just as much as dogs do

You get people saying "oh my cat just goes in and out and does his own thing" because they truly believe a cat sees people as incidental to its own existence, somewhere between irrelevant and mildly amusing. They treat cats the way they'd treat a college roommate

this isn't about cat people/dog people. It's about how we perceive domestic animals and how those perceptions determine the way we treat them https://twitter.com/GoblinScribe/status/1254539500102938624

Because cats are not these loners who are incapable of intense affection. Cats have complex social behaviors, just as dogs do. The main difference is cats don't cooperate to accomplish goals while dogs do cooperate; that has nothing to do with how a cat shows love/affection

I have cats and dogs. The level of affection toward me from both is pretty similar BUT the social behaviors are different. Dogs want validation; cats want loving coexistence.

My cats cry if I'm in the bathroom and they aren't. Cats aren't with us just because they secretly enjoy pissing us off but that's how they're perceived. "oh, the cat owns YOU;" "the CAT is the master"

No, cats just were never bred to herd sheep so they interact w/us differently

By saying things like "cats don't really want to be with us, cats don't actually feel affection or love for us, cats are loners" we're encouraging irresponsible cat owning practices like letting them go outside alone unsupervised.

Cats are domestic animals.

I don't believe in the idea of "cat people" v "dog people;" they're kinda useless distinctions that don't mean anything.

I believe in "people who understand cats" v "people who don't."