Cats are better than dogs

Since I am Con, I will be negating the resolution "Cats are better than dogs". I, therefore, stand firm in the resolution "Dogs are better than cats".1. Dogs are friendly and loyal pets. Dogs are one of the most loyal pets on the planet. They will stick by your side until they die and during that time they will provide you an unmeasurable amount of love and compassion. Not even death can break the bonds that a human and a dog can have together [1]. In fact, dogs are so loyal and friendly that they have earned the title "Man's best friend" [2]. A good example of a loyal dog is Hachiko. Hachiko was a dog that waited for his master every day for nine to ten years even though he died at work. Because of this, Hachiko is honored as a paragon of loyalty [3]. Another example of a loyal dog is Ruswarp. Ruswarp was a 14 year old border collie and his master was Graham Nuttall. Nuttall and Ruswarp went hiking, but did not return as scheduled. Then, 11 weeks later, another hiker found Nuttall's body with Ruswarp standing guard. This shows the intense loyalty that Ruswarp has for his master. For 11 weeks Ruswarp stood over his master's body, knowing he was dead, but still standing by his side [4]. The last example that I will be providing is the story of the dog Dorado. Omar Eduardo Rivera was the master of Dorado the dog. He worked on the 71st floor of the World Trade Center until September 11, 2001. On that day, when the planes hit, he knew that it would take him too long to evacuate the building due to his blindness. However, he knew that he had to let Dorado survive. So he unclipped Dorado's lead and ordered him to go. Dorado was quickly swept out of the building with all the people trying to get out at once. A few minutes later, however, Rivera felt the dog nuzzling his legs! Dorado had come back up to save Rivera. With the help of a co-worker, Dorado helped Rivera climb down 70 flights where they got out just in time before the building collapsed [5]. As you can see, the evidence I have provided proves that dogs are intensely loyal and loving animals. More examples of displays of loyalty can be found in [6] (this includes the ones I have already shown). If you want a loyal, compassionate, and friendly pet, then a dog is the right pet for you. 2. Dogs can be trained easier than cats. It is common knowledge that a dog can be trained much easier than a cat. This, however, is not to be taken lightly. 2a. Dogs can be trained to get the newspaper [7]. This is a simple task that nearly any dog can perform. In the video that I provided, you see that the dog in the video responds immediately to his master's command. Additional videos of a dog getting a newspaper include [8], [9], and [10]. If dogs can be trained to get the newspaper, then it is only logical to assume that they can also be trained to get the remote, a blanket, or even the phone! 2b. Dogs have helped rescue people. Dogs have been known to rescue people from wreckages, natural disasters, drowning, and other dangerous situations. An example of this is a dog named Pearl. Pearl is a black lab trained to work on rescue missions. She saved 12 people's lives by sniffing in the rubble for buried humans [11]. As you can see, dogs are very important on rescue missions such as these. Their incredible sense of smell and hearing can detect humans buried under rubble that we (humans) may have never found. 2c. Dogs can help disabled people. Dogs that help disabled people perform tasks they could not have done alone are called service dogs. These dogs perform a variety of tasks. These include grabbing items that may be too high or low for the person to reach (or because they simply cannot see it), leading people along the right path, protecting them from other people who may try to take advantage of their disabilities, and much more. 2d. Dogs have been used in the military and in the police force [12]. Dogs can detect weapons, explosives, or drugs. Dogs are very smart, fast, loyal, and athletic making them perfect when attacking an enemy. Dogs create a strong psychological deterrent that frightens enemies and they will defend their handlers till the end. They have been used to kill rats in trenches as well. This is important because if they do not do so the rats will survive and spread disease among the soldiers. Moreover, they were used as scouts or messengers in WW II. They can also be used to guard certain valuable items from enemies or criminals. Dogs that do such things are known as guard dogs. In addition, dogs have been used in warfare by putting explosives on their backs while they run into the enemy [13]. Rebuttals: My opponent: "They will take up less space as they will be much smaller than a dog (not a puppy or one year old dog as a I specified above). " This depends entirely on the breed of dog that you are dealing with. While some dogs may be bigger than some cats, you also have to understand that some dogs are smaller than some cats as well. Therefore, this argument works both in my favor as well as yours. My opponent: "Cats are easier to handle (in most cases). They will not slobber everywhere like most dogs do. " Most dogs do not slobber. There are some dogs that will slobber; however, the main population of dogs do not slobber. My opponent: "They will shed hair on sofas, but it will be easy to clean up unlike dogs who shed enough hair to make a broom. " This is another fallacy. How much hair a dog or cat sheds depends entirely upon the breed of the cat or dog. Some dogs shed virtually no hair at all whereas some cats shed "enough hair to make a broom" as my opponent describes it. Again, this argument can work in my favor as well as my opponent's since it depends on the breed of the dog. My opponent: "Dogs will chew almost anything from paper to furniture instead of there chew toy. " I am starting to think you are just making this information up. According to you, cats wont scratch furniture as long as you have a scratch post. Yet dogs will chew furniture even if they have a chew toy. This does not sound right. I am sure that a dog will chew on its bone, toy, or whatever you provide it with. Moreover, dogs are easier to train than cats and you can easily train a dog to not chew furniture or other valuable items. Alternatively, you could simply put the dog outside or keep it in a pen. My opponent: "With cats, you toss them a ball of yarn and they will play with the yarn. Cats wont mess up your furniture or any valuables (unless your provoke them) if you give them some yarn, a shiny object like an empty tin can or a ball. " Cats will scratch your furniture even if you do not provoke them. They need to be trained to use their scratching post just like dogs need to be trained to use their toys, bone, etc. I have already proved that it is easier to train a dog than a cat; therefore, that argument is rendered moot. I do agree that cats will play with yarn, but it wont last them forever. [1] . http://abcnews.go.com... [2] . http://articles.cnn.com... [3] . http://www.nylana.org... [4] . http://ruswarp.blogspot.com... [5] . http://dogsinthenews.com... [6] . http://www.mentalfloss.com... [7] . http://www.youtube.com... [8] . http://www.youtube.com... [9] . http://www.youtube.com... [10] . http://www.youtube.com... [11] . http://www.care2.com... [12] . http://usmilitary.about.com... [13] . http://en.wikipedia.org...