Dog's Grace

Now this is probably going to bring out a lot of cat and dog lovers polarized on views....

But having had both dogs and cats as pets, why in the world does a dog have a dex of 17 and a cat a dex of 15????

Nothing I have ever seen from my assorted animal companions in RL (And this is 12 dogs of varying sizes and 4 cats) even vaguely supports the idea that your "average" dog is more dextrous/agile then your "average" cat.

Well, yet another (albeit trivial this time) reason to buy Fantasy Hero and start a conversion process.

While I'm not really disagreeing with you. I would point out (just for fun) that my dog Zeke has reflexes that would have put Bruce Lee to shame, and I've seen my cat Moose pull some pretty klutzy manuevers.

Still, if I were to "stat" my pets, the cat would have the higher DEX. Tough call on the lowest INT; they're both dumb as a box of rocks!

proditor said:

Now this is probably going to bring out a lot of cat and dog lovers polarized on views....

But having had both dogs and cats as pets, why in the world does a dog have a dex of 17 and a cat a dex of 15????

Nothing I have ever seen from my assorted animal companions in RL (And this is 12 dogs of varying sizes and 4 cats) even vaguely supports the idea that your "average" dog is more dextrous/agile then your "average" cat.

Well, yet another (albeit trivial this time) reason to buy Fantasy Hero and start a conversion process.

Click to expand...

I don't know. I watched my Springer Spaniel fake out and chase a couple of snakes out of my back yard. More than a few snakes tried to get thier teen into her, but she either managed to block or dodge them every time. what was amusing was watchin her pick them up and throw one.

Actually, I think this makes sense with the vast number of dogs and cats I have seen. While cats are more graceful and have better balance, dogs tend to be able to maneuver more efficiently, and seem to have a greater degree of forethought and awareness to their actions. Dexterity also implies full body coordination and how efficiently each movement is utilized. I know my parents scottish terrier can catch a rat, squirrel, or cat without even straining himself, and my grandparent's jack russel terrier can do some extroardinary acrobatics and maneuvers that make your head swim. Of course, my scottish terrier is about the clumsiest aminal I have ever seen, so I guess I am seeing both ends of the spectrum.

Now, Intelligence-wise, its no contest. Every cat I have ever seen is as dumb as a bag of hammers, and operates almost solely on instinct. Dogs have been bred and domesticated for intelligence, their docile natures, and for specific tasks, and have a FAR easier time learning and adapting to new situations that cats. I won't get into a brain structure debate (I'm a neuroscientist), but if you have ever seen a dog vs cat brain, the difference is night and day.

This argument is pretty silly, yet I feel compelled to post...

proditor said:

Well, yet another (albeit trivial this time) reason to buy Fantasy Hero and start a conversion process.

Click to expand...

Ease up, mate. You're ignoring the Big Picture(tm).

The standard dog statted for D&D is a larger and more powerful animal than the standard cat statted for D&D. Ergo, it has some better stats.

However, IIRC, cats get some bonuses to stealth-realted skills that dogs do not, which makes perfect sense.

Buzz, who also plans to buy Fantasy HERO... after he's done reading 3.5e.

Because dogs are better than cats.

Gothmog said:

Now, Intelligence-wise, its no contest. Every cat I have ever seen is as dumb as a bag of hammers, and operates almost solely on instinct. Dogs have been bred and domesticated for intelligence, their docile natures, and for specific tasks, and have a FAR easier time learning and adapting to new situations that cats. I won't get into a brain structure debate (I'm a neuroscientist), but if you have ever seen a dog vs cat brain, the difference is night and day.

Click to expand...

I can't argue the science of it with you, but your anecdotal experience is pretty much the complete opposite of mine. Every cat I've even met (excluding the one retarded cat -- seriously) has always seemed quite a bit more on the ball than the dogs I've met. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever met a dog that even seemed to have a ball to be on.

Of course, I'm a cat person through and through, so I'm probably a bit biased. I generally enjoy being around dogs about as much as lichen; especially labs, retrievers, and chihuahuas. Huskies, malamuts, and German shepards aren't too bad, though.

I'd just like to note that I always thought our Cat was more dexterious than our dog. The dog would always try to paly with the cat an get a swipe in the nose. So I assumed the cat was just "quicker" in general. Until one day the cat actually made the dog angry.

The cat got in its defensive stance to pounce (I don't know if on or away from the dog), but Callie (my dog) simply smacked the cat with its paw in the blink of the eye trapping it under her paw. If you saw the face my cat made you'd realize that the cat thought he was more dexterious too.

Just goes to show that a Cat is more "graceful" and hence can be assumed to be more dexterious, but a dog can be way more dexterious when it wants to. Dogs just don't have the same cause or need to use its dexterity.

arlo-
dex 6
int 1

My cat routinely pulls stunts like you wouldn't believe.

My former cats weren't as nimble, though...