When it comes to the showdown of which pet is best, cats seem to come up short when compared to dogs.  Full disclosure - I have two of each - dogs River & Lucy...cats Thick and Thin (formerly Hazel and Harper, until, well...you know)

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The American Veterinary Association (AVA) says 38.4% of all households have a dog and 25.4% of households have a cat.  The AVA estimates Americans own 76.8 million dogs and around 58.3 million cats (with as many as 30 million to 100 million self-sufficient feral cats roaming the streets)

Cats in Artaki on Euboea island
NurPhoto via Getty Images
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So cats are second best and continue to be dissed, not only in the US but also abroad!

 Cats As Alien Invaders

Bad Kitty Point 1.)  According to the associate press, a respected Polish scientific institute has classified domestic cats as an “invasive alien species,” citing the damage they cause to birds and other wildlife.  That didn't sit well with cat lovers.

Wojciech Solarz, a biologist at the state-run Polish Academy of Sciences, wasn’t prepared for the disapproving public response when he entered “Felis catus,” the scientific name for the common house cat, into a national database run by the academy’s Institute of Nature Conservation.

The database already had 1,786 other problem species listed without objection but the tabby turned out to be the cat that broke the back of the camel of public opinion.  Still, Polish scientists say the criteria for including the cat among alien invasive species, “are 100% met by the cat" ...and to the tune of about 140 million birds killed by cats in Poland each year.

The Academy of Sciences clarified its position as not wanting to eliminate cats but was only recommending cat owners limit the time their pets spend outdoors during bird breeding season.

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Cats As Cause of Pregnancy Stress & Depression

Bad Kitty Point 2.) There is a new study out that indicates owning a cat while pregnant increases the risk of postpartum depression while owning a dog reduces mental health problems like anxiety and psychological distress after childbirth.

Study author Kenta Matsumura of the University of Toyama, Japan:

We discovered that the type of pet owned can impact a mother's mental health, both in the perinatal and postpartum periods....our findings suggest special attention must be paid to cat owners, who have a higher risk of developing mental health complications as well as toxoplasmosis.

Why do cats have whiskers? Why do they meow? Why do they nap so much? And answers to 47 other kitty questions:

Why do they meow? Why do they nap so much? Why do they have whiskers? Cats, and their undeniably adorable babies known as kittens, are mysterious creatures. Their larger relatives, after all, are some of the most mystical and lethal animals on the planet. Many questions related to domestic felines, however, have perfectly logical answers. Here’s a look at some of the most common questions related to kittens and cats, and the answers cat lovers are looking for.

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