Are dogs really better than cats? Science tries to answer.

• Study by Manhattanville College in New York polled 263 US adults
• It found those who owned pets were more satisfied than those who didn't
• Study also found dog owners scored higher in well-being than cat owners
• They were additionally more conscientious, less neurotic and agreeable

By Sarah Griffiths for MailOnline

Published: 1 February 2016 

The question of whether dogs are better than cats has always divided owners. 

Now a study has given canines the edge by claiming that they come with more benefits for their owners compared to felines. 

In particular, the research suggests dog owners are more conscientious, less neurotic and marginally more extroverted and agreeable than cat owners.

The question of whether dogs are better than cats has always divided owners. Now a study has given canines the edge by claiming that they come with more benefits compared to felines. The research suggests dog owners are more conscientious, less neurotic and more extroverted and agreeable than cat owners (shown)

The research, by a team at Manhattanville College in New York, may seem controversial to cat owners, but it also found that owning any pet boosts satisfaction.

The researchers recruited 263 adults in the US aged between 19 and 68 using Amazon's Mechanical Turk.

Mechanical Turk is a marketplace where people can carry out tasks for various businesses that computers typically can't do. As part of the study, participants completed an online questionnaire about pet ownership, personality, and their wellbeing.

The research, by a team at Manhattanville College in New York, may seem controversial to cat owners, but it also found that owning any pet boosts overall life satisfaction (shown above)

This chart shows dog owners were significantly more conscientious and less neurotic than cat owners, shown in the graph above with extroversion. Interestingly, there was little difference in openness between owners

Elsewhere, it found dog owners were happier (stock image) than cat owners, which can be partially explained by personality, emotion regulation style and need satisfaction
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CATS VS DOGS: HEARING 

Any owner will tell you their pet has selective hearing, ignoring commands but coming running at the merest hint of food. But which one has the best?

While dogs' hearing is two or three times better than a human's, cats win hands down. 

An experiment by vet Dick White found that while both animals can hear a noise at 50 kilohertz - 10kHz is within human hearing - a cat responds to noises at 60kHz.

That's because it has a very erect and mobile outer ear. Mr White said: 'It acts like a radar dish to collect the sound waves and directs them down to the tympanic membrane (eardrum).'

The cat's middle ear chamber is also relatively larger than a dog's which is why it's thought to be able to hear a wider range of frequencies. 

But in the wild it needs to - the small animals moggies prey on tend to make high-pitched noises which helps the cat locate their dinner. 
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Some 64 per cent of those questioned owned a pet, with 94 per cent looking after either a cat - 41 per cent - or a dog, at 53 per cent.

The researchers found that while pet owners didn't significantly differ from non-pet owners when it came to happiness, negative emotions or emotion regulation strategies, they were 'more satisfied with life than non-owners.'

They also found dog owners scored higher in well-being than cat owners on all measures.

'Dog owners were significantly more conscientious and less neurotic than cat owners,' explained the research team, led by Katherine Jacobs Bao. 

'Dog owners were marginally more extroverted and agreeable than cat owners.'

Elsewhere, it found dog owners were happier than cat owners, which can be partially explained by personality, emotion regulation style and need satisfaction.

Interestingly, there was little difference in openness between cat and dog owners, according to the study.

The research was presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Convention in San Diego. 

This is not the first study to link owners' emotional traits with pet ownership.

A previous study by the University of California, Berkley, found cat owners were more anxious than cat owners, as well as more extroverted. 

Dr Bao told Cnet: 'Personality likely influences our choices to adopt a pet and which pet we choose, but our personality is not fixed, so it could also be influenced by our relationships with others, including our pets.'  

Last month, BBC documentary 'Cats vs Dogs' claimed dogs seem to love their owners more than cats, which are known for their independent personalities.

Previous studies have found that dogs and their owners both produce oxytocin when together - the same hormone that pregnant women release during birth and breastfeeding to help them bond with their baby. 

CATS VS DOGS: HIGH ACHIEVERS WHEN IT COMES TO JUMPING 

Taking a similar-sized dog and cat, Matthew Pead, of the Royal Veterinary College, sought to discover which species can jump the highest.

The cat was a clear winner - soaring 50 inches (127cm) into the air while the dog only managed 44 inches (112cm). 

The highest cat jump ever recorded is 77inches (196cm). 

Cats can jump higher than dogs (pictured), soaring 50 inches (127cm) into the air while the dog only managed 44 inches (112cm) in one experiment

'The dog is probably performing at the limit of what he can do,' said Dr Pead, 'whereas I think the cat's taking it easy.'

Given that both jump with the same technique, why is the cat so much better?

'The cat's got an incredibly long reach,' Dr Pead explained. 'They have relatively long bones in relation to their size - that gives them long levers, and long levers with long muscles means that you can generate a lot of force (to jump up with).'

Cat bones are also much lighter than dogs' because they contain larger cavities. Their spines are more supple, increasing their ability to crouch then explode into a jump.

'The cat can pretty much push itself straight up in the air like a rocket,' he added.

In the show, US neuroscientist Dr Paul Zak tested cats for the hormone. 

A total of 10 dogs and 10 cats had saliva samples taken before playing with their owners for ten minutes. 

Afterwards, another saliva sample was taken and tested for the presence of oxytocin. 

The results were astonishing: dogs showed an average increase in the hormone of 57.2 per cent, but cats just 12 per cent. 

'From this sample it's true to say that these dogs love their owners five times more than the cats do,' Dr Zak said.

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