It really sounds like your problems are with dog owners and not the animal itself. It also sounds like your dog sucks or you’re a bad owner yourself…The majority of them are VERY easy to train as millenias of domestication has made them people-pleasers.
This puppy is the first dog I’ve had that I’ve been fully responsible for training and he learned to not do all those things in the first two weeks with minimal effort. He shits in the same spot outside, doesn’t pull on the leash, and only barks when he can’t get to me (like if he falls asleep in the hallway and I close the door). The biggest struggle has been getting him to stop chewing on the rugs. Meanwhile, you’ll never train a cat to not rip up your furniture, chew wires, or knock stuff off shelves - you just have to take steps to mitigate and live with it.
That’s an insane take on their nature, too. Cats are equally “implicitly aggressive” (they famously kill birds just for fun). Do you live somewhere with only junkyards and drug dealers or something? Dogs are inherently friendly animals. Mine has met 5 cats now (introducing him early so he’ll be excited when I adopt one next year) and 100% of the aggression came from the cats.
Dogs require WAY more work and are not rewarding at all to me. I hate the things that fundamentally make them dogs.
I won’t try to convince anyone to get a dog - they’re not for everyone - but as someone with a ton of experience with both and who loves both equally, you’re wrong about what “fundamentally make[s] them dogs”.
Since we’re throwing shade, I should let you know that no matter how often you change the litter box, your house smells. You might not notice it but your guests do
It really sounds like your problems are with dog owners and not the animal itself
A lot of them, yes.
your dog sucks
Yes, he’s a Covid puppy who never got socialized until he was like 2.
The majority of them are VERY easy to train
You are on crack
Cats are equally “implicitly aggressive”
Moreso than dogs I would say, but a cat can’t bite my fingers off or maul kids to death. There are 5 million reported dog bites in the US per year. Do you know how bad a dog bite has to be for it to actually be reported??
I should let you know that no matter how often you change the litter box, your house smells
When I lived with a cat I always noticed that. Bothered me a lot. If I were to get another cat I would put a lot of money and time into smell reduction, but I don’t think that’s going to happen because kids are in my future and Toxoplasma is real.
I’m not on crack. I volunteered at a shelter (cats/dogs) for 6 years and another shelter (cats/dogs/rabbits) for 2 more. I have a lot of experience with animals even outside of having at least one pet in my home for 95% of my life. Very few dogs are untrainable and even fewer from birth… It’s usually the result of abuse or years of neglect. (ETA: only having experience with bad neighbors and one dog of your own doesn’t really give you “a means to judge”)
Likewise, there’s very few “bad” cats - though I’d wager the percentage is higher given the prevalence of feral cats. They are MUCH less domesticated and will “revert” to being completely feral in one generation. Not a bad thing, just pointing it out.
The majority of dogs don’t need to be trained to not rip a toddler’s fade off and those that do are usually from breeds that were bred for aggression. Pitbulls, as much as I love them, are in that category. Golden Retrievers are not.
It really sounds like your problems are with dog owners and not the animal itself. It also sounds like your dog sucks or you’re a bad owner yourself…The majority of them are VERY easy to train as millenias of domestication has made them people-pleasers.
This puppy is the first dog I’ve had that I’ve been fully responsible for training and he learned to not do all those things in the first two weeks with minimal effort. He shits in the same spot outside, doesn’t pull on the leash, and only barks when he can’t get to me (like if he falls asleep in the hallway and I close the door). The biggest struggle has been getting him to stop chewing on the rugs. Meanwhile, you’ll never train a cat to not rip up your furniture, chew wires, or knock stuff off shelves - you just have to take steps to mitigate and live with it.
That’s an insane take on their nature, too. Cats are equally “implicitly aggressive” (they famously kill birds just for fun). Do you live somewhere with only junkyards and drug dealers or something? Dogs are inherently friendly animals. Mine has met 5 cats now (introducing him early so he’ll be excited when I adopt one next year) and 100% of the aggression came from the cats.
I won’t try to convince anyone to get a dog - they’re not for everyone - but as someone with a ton of experience with both and who loves both equally, you’re wrong about what “fundamentally make[s] them dogs”.
Since we’re throwing shade, I should let you know that no matter how often you change the litter box, your house smells. You might not notice it but your guests do
A lot of them, yes.
Yes, he’s a Covid puppy who never got socialized until he was like 2.
You are on crack
Moreso than dogs I would say, but a cat can’t bite my fingers off or maul kids to death. There are 5 million reported dog bites in the US per year. Do you know how bad a dog bite has to be for it to actually be reported??
When I lived with a cat I always noticed that. Bothered me a lot. If I were to get another cat I would put a lot of money and time into smell reduction, but I don’t think that’s going to happen because kids are in my future and Toxoplasma is real.
I’m not on crack. I volunteered at a shelter (cats/dogs) for 6 years and another shelter (cats/dogs/rabbits) for 2 more. I have a lot of experience with animals even outside of having at least one pet in my home for 95% of my life. Very few dogs are untrainable and even fewer from birth… It’s usually the result of abuse or years of neglect. (ETA: only having experience with bad neighbors and one dog of your own doesn’t really give you “a means to judge”)
Likewise, there’s very few “bad” cats - though I’d wager the percentage is higher given the prevalence of feral cats. They are MUCH less domesticated and will “revert” to being completely feral in one generation. Not a bad thing, just pointing it out.
The majority of dogs don’t need to be trained to not rip a toddler’s fade off and those that do are usually from breeds that were bred for aggression. Pitbulls, as much as I love them, are in that category. Golden Retrievers are not.