Why Dogs Love Water…
Why do most dogs love water and most cats hate it? Even though not all cats hate water – like Maine Coons, which are known to enjoy it – the average cat would probably prefer that you didn’t try to stick them in the bathtub.
Kelley Bollen is an animal behavior expert and the former director of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University. She says, one reason cats don’t like water is that their fur doesn’t dry quickly. So, it’s uncomfortable for cats to be wet. Cats are also control freaks and like four feet on a solid surface. So they don’t like the sensation of floating in water.
Why don’t dogs feel the same way? Well, according to Bollen, some breeds are specifically raised to work in the water. Like the Portuguese Water Dog, the Duck Tolling Retriever, and the Irish Water Spaniel. And even outside of genetic factors, dogs are also more likely to be introduced to water in a more pleasant manner from an early age than cats are.
