Young - African Slave Trade 1450-1800

CATS SURGE AHEAD

By Jessica Young

In the twentieth century cats and dogs were the most popular pets but more people had dogs. By the beginning of the 21^st century, cat ownership had increased so much that dogs were the second most popular pets. Cat ownership increased so much because cats are easier to take care of, less expensive, and good for people’s health.

Cats are easier to care for than dogs. As more and more families relied on two incomes in the late twentieth century there was less time available to care for pets. Cats, unlike dogs for example, do not need to be walked. Victor Vet wrote that “dogs need to be walked for 30 minutes twice a day to be happy and healthy.”[1] Cats use cat boxes that need only to be cleaned out every other day. Catherine Clean, the household chores expert, was one of many people who agreed. She said, “It takes only 10 minutes to clean out a cat box.”[2] Furthermore, cats clean themselves[3] so they do not need to be bathed or taken to groomers.

[NOTICE THAT THERE ARE TWO PIECES OF EVIDENCE FOR EVERY ASSERTION AND THAT EACH PIECE COMES FROM A DIFFERENT SOURCE!]

Grooming a pet not only takes time but is also expensive, which is another reason why more people chose to have cats instead of dogs. The National Association of Dog Groomers reported an average cost of twenty-five dollars for bathing and grooming a poodle in 2001. It recommended that families bathe and groom their dogs every two weeks.[4] On the other hand, the National Association of Cat Groomers recommended that cats only be bathed in medical emergencies. It said that cat bathing cost twenty five dollars for an average size cat.[5] The price of cat bathing and dog bathing was the same, but cats need many fewer baths and much less grooming, so they cost families less money.  Cats cost families less money in other ways as well. When busy families took short vacations having a cat meant they did not need to leave their pet in an expensive kennel for the weekend.[6]

Families, however, were not eager to leave their cats because the cats helped them feel calm and loved. Researchers from the Cornell Veterinary School discovered that petting cats lowered the blood pressure of adults from the ages of 25 to 78.[7] Psychologists at Harvard recently discovered that people who were greeted by their cats when they came home from work had a much lower chance of becoming depressed or alcoholic.[8] Recent research in animal psychology supports the idea that cats love their people and recognize their people’s emotions[9] Gatto and Chatte observed cats in a five year longitudinal study; it concluded that cats eagerly await the return of their people from work and were eager to please them. Furthermore, the cats' attachment to their humans increased over time.[10]

Conclusion: [Go from the KNOWN to the UNKNOWN – or – expand on the implications of your being correct.]

 Their ease of care, smaller expense, and their benefits to human health made cat ownership increase in the 21^st century. This period was marked by the sudden and unexpected decline in the world economy. Every aspect of life, including pet ownership, became more economically difficult so a pet that did not take people away from their jobs or their income, and even helped their physical and psychological health, would naturally surge in popularity.