Always had dogs, but after my Heeler (BEST DOG IN THE WORLD, EVER!) passed, I adopted the local cat colony and have had cats for years. If you raise a kitten all your own it's easier to understand the attachment, cats can be in tune with their person, but it works better if you can start at the beginning. My Missy was raised in my lap from the day she was born, and it has made her a bit different from most. Everyone jokes and they call her "Lassie" after the famous dog. She comes when I whistle, I can ask for anything she has and she will hand it to me like a well trained dog, she will find my brother and ask him to open doors for her if I'm on the other side... she even asks politely for bites of my steak, never stealing anything. She's quite clever.😻
It's a little easier having a cat too.

I grew up in a house with both!
5 cats & 2 shepherds. They all slept together in one big curled-up ball on my bed!
I would still have both but I can't afford their care. Meaning FOOD, VET VISITS, TOYS etc.
So I just have 2 cats. Cats are easier to care for & they don't require walking several times a day!

Cats are independent but can be very loving. They consider themselves people at least, possibly above you, depending on breed and temperament. They require very little maintenance. You simply have to train them to use the box, then clean it and provide them food and water. The rest is on you to interact with your cat and learn its behaviors. Some cats will be lap cats, some won't. Some will get up on your shoulders. They want to be petted and adored. It's up to you if you get cuddly with your cat. Some people seem to just want them around the house. Some use them to catch mice. But if you're looking for a pet and not for their utilitarian functions like vermin population decimation then they can be very afectionate if you put in the time. My cat likes to cuddle me in the mornings.

I have 3 cats and a dog. Cats are a lot less needy and a lot less work. They are happy to get on with their own business. But can be just as endearing as dogs.

I lived in a camp ground with cats, the queen had kittens in our camper - some of the happiest days I can remember!
We lived on top of a tropical mountain with outdoor clowders of cats and other humans who cared for cats all around, a real cat city with real feral cats and real serious cat loving humans! You can't imagine how tired and happy we were.

Cats are dogs who don't need to be walked. They choose YOU and if you think there is no affection, you have not been a cat dad.

I know you said guys, well ...... :) At one time, I also never had been a cat Mom until, I was one and it was amazing and paradigm redefining.
A toast to Cats and Dogs ❤🥂

I have had both. And I am actually allergic to both. I can live with a dog that has human style hair, and there ARE a few. The poodle, the Bichon Frise, and the Maltese are the few with which I am familiar, and I have had cross breeds such as a Cocker Poo, and a Bichon Poo, but I owned a pure bred Maltese.

cats are (can be) sweet and cute and dont need such intensive care and attention as dogs do. theyre less destructive too. if dogs are man's best friend, cats are women's.

My husband hated cats until I brought one home and his attitude sure did change once he bonded with it. That was many, many cats ago too.😉

Three billion birds have been lost in North America since 1970
National Geographic
2 hrs ago

You might not notice it while hiking through the woods or strolling through a city park, but according to a new study, bird populations across North America are in a state of quiet freefall.
In fact, compared with bird counts from 1970, scientists now estimate that the United States and Canada, which are home to 760 bird species, have lost around three billion birds.
The study, published today in the journal Science, analyzed a combination of long-term population surveys as well as weather radar data to tease out the trend. Overall, the researchers discovered that birds found in grasslands—including well-known families such as sparrows, warblers, blackbirds, and finches—have been hit hardest, with their populations cut 53 percent over the last 48 years.
With nearly three-quarters of all grassland species experiencing decline, it seems these biomes, which include farmers’ fields, are especially vulnerable to habitat loss and exposure to toxic pesticides. But plummeting bird numbers may also be linked to huge drops in insect populations—an important avian prey, the researchers say.
“We should take it as staggering, devastating news,” says study senior author Peter Marra, director of the Georgetown Environment Initiative at Georgetown University.
That’s because birds are crucial to the healthy functioning of ecosystems. Not only do our feathered friends help keep crop pests and other insects in check, but they also play critical roles in distributing seeds, disposing of rotting carcasses, and even pollinating plants.
What’s killing birds?
For the study, Marra and colleagues analyzed range-wide population estimates across 529 species of birds, some of which provided around half a century’s worth of data. They also included biomass estimates from weather radar, which can actually detect birds as they take to the skies at night to complete their biannual migrations. This helped the team calculate how populations have changed in areas where on-the-ground monitoring is more sparse, like the far north.
Once all the changes were added up, it amounted to a loss of 2.9 billion birds since 1970—a total reduction of 29 percent.
Though North American birds are vastly diverse, there are some common drivers behind their demise. “You only need to fly across the country to see that we’ve drastically changed the face of the earth,” says Marra. “There’s a lot of habitat that’s just gone.”
The widespread use of pesticides has not only harmed insect populations, but the birds themselves: A recent study found that when birds eat seeds treated with certain neonicotinoid pesticides, they immediately lose weight, which in turn hinders their ability to migrate.
Other causes include collisions with glass windows, which may kill some 600 million birds each year, and house cats, which are estimated to hunt down between one and four billion birds each year.
Clearly, the hits are adding up.
It’s not too late
Lucas DeGroote is the avian research coordinator for the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, which runs one of the longest continually operating bird-banding stations in North America, out of Powdermill Nature Reserve in southwestern Pennsylvania. He says the new study is “not at all surprising.”
“We’ve been banding birds here since 1961, and across that almost 60 years, we’re catching fewer birds in volume than we once did, and the species composition has also changed,” says DeGroote. “So it’s really great to see an analysis that puts some numbers to that.”
Grassland birds have been particularly impacted by exposure to pesticides and habitat loss.
Despite the magnitude of the findings, both experts believe that there’s still time to reverse the trend. For instance, people “can make sure cats are kept inside, plant native plants, and minimize the impacts windows have,” Marra says.
Adds DeGroote, “There’s this saying, The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time to plant a tree is now.”
In other words, the choices we make now will determine what happens next. “I think that level of optimism is needed for conservation,” he says.

I bought my wife two Maine Coons. They’re actually pretty cool. I’m a dog person for sure, the bigger the better. But, the Maine Coons are very social and interact a lot like dogs.

Well
You don't have to take them out for walks year round
They are self sufficient

They can be finicky but if you can gain a cat's trust you are okay in my book

i've had and loved both
i cant choose

For the record, I can not cast a vote because they are both loving, devoted and loyal family members, better than (most) people.

You must understand independence first. I mean your own independence.

You don't value your own independence, then it's not possible to understand cats.

Some people are simply social types. Dogs fit in with those that are social.

I had both and still have both. Cats are like a woman, you can't understand them.

I used to be a dog guy but in my old age I love cats.

My brother has cats but he is married.

Cats are the best.

Them.

Cats are less trouble.

I've always been very dubious of guys who not only admit to living alone for most of their adult life, but admit to having a cat for company as well. But I'm especially dubious of guys who post pictures of their cat and then talk about their cat like women talk about their babies. Usually, those types of cat-guys are loners and heavy drinkers, essentially alcoholics by choice, who don't typically date women OR men. They just sit alone at home drinking their booze and watching TV and of course, playing with their cat. THAT is one fukkedup existence if you ask me.