The purrfect pet?

Imagine the scene. On a windy, rainy beach, a dog owner stands huddled in her cagoule, hood up, wellies on. Enthusiastically running towards her, splashing his way through the bitterly cold sea is her bright-eyed, obedient, adoring dog, jaggy stick in mouth, water dripping from his already slobbery fur. As he drops the object at her sandy feet, she picks it up without delay, hurling it back into the freezing ocean for him to again chase and retrieve, without question.

Meanwhile, in a nearby house, curled up on a cosy, pristine clean bed, lies a cat. If she were asked to venture out in the rain, paddle in the sea and return a soggy, dirty stick for her owner, one piercing stare would say it all.

And for this common-sense, independent, intelligent approach to life, I am very much in favour of owning a cat, rather than a dog.

It's not that I have anything against canines - in the right location and household they can make the perfect companion, offering undying loyalty and devotion to those in charge of their care.

But I find cats the better counterpart and they most certainly are not aloof, dismissive creatures, it's their stubbornness that makes them so appealing.

Having a cat in a household is very much like having another human being. With their own personalities, desires for comfort, good food, warmth and companionship, they become an integral part of any family.

Whereas a dog looks to its owner for help at every stage of the day, from going for a walk to having a bath, a cat is very much self- sufficient, like most people.

Just like any other grown-up member of the family, they are able to go to the toilet unaided, carefully tidying their mess up after them, and they wash and groom themselves with ease.

They do not leave piles of hair discarded around the home, nor pools of dribble on upholstery and carpets.

They love to be adored and enjoy nothing more than spending time with their owner, either cuddled up on the settee, or relaxing nearby, depending on their own unique personality.

Unlike dogs, they do not need constant entertainment, instead enjoying their own company as well as the satisfaction gained from a solitary walk in their neighbourhood, or some playtime with their fellow felines.

A cat owner is a satisfied person, always guaranteed an appreciative miaow, purr or brush past from their moggy as they live separate yet very united lives. Give me a cat over a dog any day of the week.

LET me begin by saying that in no way do I condone what the rather portly woman from Coventry did to that poor cat Lola.

Imprisoning any creature in a wheelie bin is without doubt a horrific act of cruelty. Never mind that the pet had to do without food and water for 16 hours, if the lid had been on any tighter, Lola would never have survived her trash trial.

And quite rightly the CCTV footage of Lola's dumping caused uproar. This, after all, is a nation of animal lovers. Indeed there are 27 million pets in Britain, with cats and dogs being the main animals of choice at more than 7.3 and 7.2 million respectively.

Despite that, the National Missing Pets Register states that there are currently 3000 dogs and 11,650 cats missing in the UK. Perhaps wheelie bins should be checked more often - Coventry cat-hater could well be part of an organised gang.

Yet while I'm sure Lola is adored by her owners, I must admit I am not a cat fan. They are pets for masochists. For people who feel so bad about themselves that they even need a four-legged feline to reinforce their feelings of unworthiness.

Why else would you share your life with an aloof creature, which might deign to reward your feeding of them with a slight purr in your direction. Don't be fooled if they rub themselves around your legs, they've either got an itch they can't scratch, or they're deliberately attempting to trip you up.

Much is made, by cat-owners anyway, of cats' cleanliness. Well I'd rather not share a house with an animal that is so OCD about licking its fur that it then has to throw up a hairball thanks very much. And litter trays? Really, why would anyone in their right mind want to have a tray on the floor of their kitchen for their cat to poo in? It's hardly sanitary. And that's if they use it. There's certainly one cat near us who prefers our lawn.

A dog on the other hand, well that's a proper pet. Cats may well be independent of nature but that proves the point that they're not good pets. Unlike dogs they don't dole out love and affection, they most certainly don't provide companionship and they can't keep you fit.

Without a doubt cats are takers not givers in the owner-pet relationship. And with plenty of people already behaving like that in the world, who needs to be kicked by a cat?

LET THE FUR FLY

There has been a massive online debate about the cat dumping, with thousands expressing either anger at or sympathy for the grey-haired woman involved:

Apparently the police are handing it over to the RSPCA as they say it's not criminal and she is being given police protection. I think it's disgusting, of course it's criminal.

Perhaps she was so fed up with picking up cat s*** from her garden that she lost it. My rather grumpy neighbour likes to place the c*** on the windscreen of the car of the owner or has been known to deposit it through a letterbox.

Cruel and wicked. You can tell what's in people's hearts by their conduct.

Wow. With this standard of Neighbourhood Watch, the British crime rate should be zero. I'm no Buddhist, but if I ever have to come back as a pet, it sure as hell would be in the UK.

People like this woman who commit cruelty and cause pain for no other reason than their own perverse pleasure, along with foxhunters, are no better than paedophiles, child molesters and rapists.

It's always bothered me that dog owners can get prosecuted for letting their dogs s*** everywhere, yet cat owners happily let their pets s*** all over other people's gardens. Even worse, if I returned the cat s*** to its owner, I would legally be in the wrong!