# Are cats as pets becoming more 'Manly man" acceptable? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 18, 2012, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885 "2012-08-18T17:46:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2012, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/21 "2012-08-19T12:53:30Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > If I meet a man who tells me he has a dog, I can’t wait to be able to hang out with the dog someday. If I meet a man who tells me he has a cat, I wonder how long before he tells me he’s gay. no way! I flat out have trouble trusting a man who doesn’t have any animals. if a man has cats one thing we know for sure: he isn’t a control freak. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2012, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/22 "2012-08-19T13:25:39Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Ouch. > > I have found that puffy-chested business executives can show each other photos of their dogs on their iPhone but that cats shouldn’t be discussed. Silly. Dogs are for men who want to be worshiped. Cats are for men who want to be challenged. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2012, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/23 "2012-08-19T13:26:04Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > If I meet a man who tells me he has a dog, I can’t wait to be able to hang out with the dog someday. If I meet a man who tells me he has a cat, I wonder how long before he tells me he’s gay. This kitteh \<3ing str8 dood thinks your handle is well chosen. The long-ago tradition of men with cats was kind of typed to bachelors. When post-WW2 social conformity took over, prolonged bachelorhood became a sign of homosexuality, so of course cats got swept up in that. ---
**Author:** ![BlackKnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2012, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/24 "2012-08-19T13:56:45Z")
This is an Internet discussion about cats. _Where are the pictures?!_ :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2012, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/25 "2012-08-19T13:57:54Z")
[Here.](https://www.google.com/search?num=10&hl=en&safe=off&site=&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1017&bih=546&q=cat&oq=cat&gs_l=img.3..0l10.313.567.0.903.3.3.0.0.0.0.151.392.0j3.3.0...0.0...1ac.lldTaSp8C5k) ---
**Author:** ![Oly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oly/32/8255_2.png) [@Oly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oly)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/26 "2012-08-21T13:11:13Z")
[Every gun makes its own tune.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgKSJZ1B3-s) (10 sec Utoob clip) ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/27 "2012-08-21T16:01:18Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > No doubt. Guys can now have a cat. Mind you certain breeds like a bengal or maine coon are a bit more manly. You haven’t met my Mainey. LucyCat is about as manly as your average frilly pink dress.😃 Her favorite stance is lying on the floor with her paws in the air and her fluffy white belly exposed. The DSH is one who catches a mouse about once a month and goes batshit crazy when he sees a bird he thinks he can catch. ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/28 "2012-08-21T16:08:10Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Dogs are for men who want to be worshiped. Cats are for men who want to be challenged. Yeah. I have to wonder about men with dogs sometimes. A man with a dog makes me think that he wants obedient followers. A man with a cat makes me think he’s content to live with something that won’t always do his bidding. My husband had a cat before we married. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/29 "2012-08-21T16:09:55Z")
> [@Beware\_of\_Doug](#): > > [Here.](https://www.google.com/search?num=10&hl=en&safe=off&site=&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1017&bih=546&q=cat&oq=cat&gs_l=img.3..0l10.313.567.0.903.3.3.0.0.0.0.151.392.0j3.3.0...0.0...1ac.lldTaSp8C5k) About 3,840,000,000 results (0.28 seconds) That’s right. More than three and a half BILLION Google results from ‘cat’. So, let’s see what we get from ‘dog’. 4,530,000,000 results. OK. Hmmmm… perhaps this is not a metric to use in this debate. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/30 "2012-08-21T16:39:41Z")
> [@Beware\_of\_Doug](#): > > This kitteh \<3ing str8 dood thinks your handle is well chosen. > > The long-ago tradition of men with cats was kind of typed to bachelors. When post-WW2 social conformity took over, prolonged bachelorhood became a sign of homosexuality, so of course cats got swept up in that. Couldn’t care less about societal associations, or whatever fluff you’re peddling here. I’ve always, for as long as I can remember, preferred dogs to cats, and thought cats were for wimps. Dogs are obscenely fun, they love to be roughhoused with, they have tons of energy, don’t get all butthurt about getting a little water on their fur, will go for a swim with you, they’ll hunt with you. Very cool animals. Cats are lazy, prissy, and total assholes. Who wants a prissy little pet whose sole function is to look fluffy? I was somewhat joking when I said I suspect a man who has a cat is gay, but I do strongly suspect that I could take him in a fight. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/31 "2012-08-21T18:59:13Z")
> [@LavenderBlue](#): > > Yeah. I have to wonder about men with dogs sometimes. A man with a dog makes me think that he wants obedient followers. A man with a cat makes me think he’s content to live with something that won’t always do his bidding. My husband had a cat before we married. When I go for a weekend of bear hunting where I wear only a codpiece and a bowie knife, I like to know I can just leave a big bowl of food and my pet will take care of itself. Without finding a pile of shit on my bed. When I hunt Tyrannosauruses with a Beretta 92F, I don’t want to have a pet that will bark and give away my position, or get immediately eaten by that comically short armed monster. > [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Who wants a prissy little pet whose sole function is to look fluffy? You do know that Pomeranians, Bichon Frises, and Pekingese are all dogs, right? ---
**Author:** ![BlackKnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/32 "2012-08-21T19:10:46Z")
To be fair to **MeanOldLady** , I’m pretty sure even my cat could take me in a fight. ---
**Author:** ![XanderCrews](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ee59a6/32.png) [@XanderCrews](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XanderCrews)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/33 "2012-08-21T19:16:03Z")
I’m a tank commander in the Army when I’m not tooling around on my sportbike or muscle car. And I luv my two kittehs so much. It makes sense. I’m often in the field for a week or two at a time and I can’t take care of a dog like that. I just fill the cats’ bowls with food and go away. They don’t seem to mind. ---
**Author:** ![shiftless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@shiftless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shiftless)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/34 "2012-08-21T19:19:32Z")
\*\*Are cats as pets becoming more 'Manly man" acceptable? \*\* No. Sorry. Well, that isn’t exactly true. The Manly man society has recently eased its position on the large cats. Probably about the time Mike Tyson got a tiger. It is now acceptably manly to own and even pet a tiger. You might even get extra man points if you leave a tiger and a pekingese alone together. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/35 "2012-08-21T19:31:29Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > You do know that Pomeranians, Bichon Frises, and Pekingese are all dogs, right? Wrong. These are not dogs. [This](http://www.fordogtrainers.com/ProductImages/dog-breeds-muzzles/German-Shepherd-muzzle-German-Shepherd.jpg) is a dog. [This](http://img5.findthebest.com/sites/default/files/465/media/images/Bichon_Frise.jpg) is not. ---
**Author:** ![Scubaqueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Scubaqueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scubaqueen)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/36 "2012-08-21T19:48:28Z")
‘Must love cats,’ is now a dealbreaker after the epic fail of my engagement. Of course, now that the DiveMaster and his menagerie (two dogs, a cat, and a bird) and my menagerie (three cats) and I are back together, it’s all null and void. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Turpentine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Turpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turpentine)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/37 "2012-08-21T19:52:34Z")
I don’t necessarily think that a single man with a cat is gay or a sissy, but I do usually think that he’s probably a socially awkward and lonely guy, a la Jon Arbuckle. All other things being equal, I would prefer a guy with a dog over a guy with a cat. Unless it’s a fluffy little yip-yip dog, in which I would wonder if he was gay. ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/38 "2012-08-21T21:55:17Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Wrong. These are not dogs. [This](http://www.fordogtrainers.com/ProductImages/dog-breeds-muzzles/German-Shepherd-muzzle-German-Shepherd.jpg) is a dog. [This](http://img5.findthebest.com/sites/default/files/465/media/images/Bichon_Frise.jpg) is not. You have a point. One of my neighbors has a Bichon. He’s a nasty, yappy, barky little ball of grey fur that tries to either nip you or run away if you try to pet him. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/39 "2012-08-21T23:05:04Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Who wants a prissy little pet whose sole function is to look fluffy? You really don’t know cats. Do you know how many scratches I regularly have on my arms and hands from “playing” around? Do you know how many times I’ve been ambushed from the tops of bookshelves or under tables? Living with a cat is like living with a hairy, psychotic ninja. Who occasionally likes belly rubs. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2012, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885/40 "2012-08-21T23:24:33Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > If I meet a man who tells me he has a dog, I can’t wait to be able to hang out with the dog someday. If I meet a man who tells me he has a cat, I wonder how long before he tells me he’s gay. Hey now! I have a cat and…oh. Never mind. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-cats-as-pets-becoming-more-manly-man-acceptable/631885.md?page=3)