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Over the past 25 years that I have been a cat owner I have narrowed down the many reasons for having a cat as a companion to three main reasons.

When I am trying to convince dog owners on the advantages of owning a cat, this is what I tell them.

Reason one: Cats are a low maintains pet compared to dogs.

I have 4 cats sharing my house with me and my wife. They eat dry food from one feeder that I fill once a day. Same with the water.

We have four litter boxes located in strategic places in the house. I scoop these boxes every day and It takes me less then 10 minuets. Try walking 4 dogs in that amount of time and clean up after them.

My wife and I travel for up to four days and leave the cats unattended. The worse we come home to is a 4 full litter boxes. Leave 4 dogs alone and I wouldn't want to come home.

Reason two: Cats are really more social animals then dogs.

Dogs are pack animals by nature and sees their owners as the dominate dog in the pack. That's why you can smack a dog and he will most likely come back to you, try smacking a cat and you won't see it again no time soon.

Our four cats have their own social order and have let us into the mix. If you bring your cat indoors and make it part of the family it will entertain you with more social behaviors than a dog.

Reason three: The size of most cats make them ideal pets.

It pains me to see people that live in apartments that own a big dog. The cats size makes it the perrrfect (I couldn't resist) companion for apartment dwellers. A good size apartment will be big enough for one or two cats to have enough space.

I suppose I should add one or two arguments that you may have to face when convincing dog owners to give Fido the heave ho and get a real pet.

The old argument of ' I allergic to cats' can be countered with the fact that they now have hypoallergenic cats. Tell them to Google it and then go get a cat.

The last obstacle you may face is what I call the Fear Factor. Some people are deathly afraid of cats. When I have a visit from one of these people I try and get them and one of may cats locked in the bathroom for at least an hour. Most of the time it works but keep the phone line clear in case you have to dial 911.