CATS AND DOGS

You are, so they say, a cat person or a dog person. One or the other. Never the twain shall meet. And in a world where we are judged, increasingly, by how we answer bland questions in social media profiles, which one you are supposedly says a lot about you.

            Everyone seems to like dog people; and it’s not affected by how many dogs are involved. In fact, the more dogs you have, the more kind-hearted and likable you’re perceived to be (There are, of course, exceptions. Most people are suspicious of someone with a Pit-Bull terrier – especially if they’re tattooed, and shaven and hairy in all the wrong places; and heaven forbid you should have a Rottweiler and a rat’s-tail).

            But, own a cat? You’re lonely, and a little pathetic. Two cats? You’re suspect. More than two? You’re clearly insane, and you’ll die alone – at which point your cats will eat you.

            Me, I don’t have a preference. I like both (Bi-petual? Reject all labels! Rage against the machine!). And yes, funnily enough, that probably does say something about me.

            Dogs represent my better side – what I’d like to be, or what I’d like to be more often: unquestioningly loyal; instinctively able to find their place in the pack and be content with it; teachable; fierce in defence of home and family; affectionate; easily amused; a comfort to those who love them.

            Cats, on the other hand, are more like what I really am: solitary; prickly; aloof to a point easily mistaken for arrogance; indolent; vicious when rubbed the wrong way; capable of extreme affection, but usually when I need it – not always when my companion does; built for exceptional self-reliance, but inclined to let others look after me if they’ll do it.

We can’t change our personalities and, as the formula goes, “Personality plus environment equals behaviour” ... and there’s the key.

While unable to change them, we can understand our personalities; we can examine our thoughts, our environment, and how we react to them. If we make this a habit – and are, above all, honest with ourselves – then ninety-nine times out of a hundred we can act according to our values rather than our impulses; our behaviour is still based on the same personality, thoughts, and external stimuli, but the result is different.

            There’s a school of thought which says that if you’re able to imagine and wish for something, then it’s part of you and you’re capable of achieving it. Not sure I completely believe that, but I’d like to think I won’t remain a sad old bachelor getting crankier and more set in my ways with every passing year.

            At the moment life is about standing on my own two feet, dealing with my own shit, and trying to be more like the person I want to be and to share. It’s a job best done alone.

            One day though, given the opportunity, I’d still like to show the right Lady my inner German shepherd.