Chester & Lola are very cat-like in many ways. They love cat toys (although I suppose they love just about any toy, but they do go to great lengths to steal the cat toys). They curl up on us like cats do. They are both big lickers — not just faces, but hands, and really, pretty much any part of the anatomy they can get to. Chester has a tendency to head butt me when he’s trying to get comfortable at night.

Yet there are some major differences, too, some good, so just okay. Dogs don’t purr, for instance. Boy, I tell ya, if they could just purr . . . there’s little more soothing than a purring cat on your lap (or around your head, as the case may be).

Dogs aren’t anywhere near as soft as cats. Yes, petting dogs can be very soothing, but petting cats can be a sensual experience. It’s like having a living fur coat on your lap. Chester is actually quite plush, and Lola’s fur has softened a lot, but they just don’t compare to the boys’ coats.

One great difference: at almost any point of the day, I am assured to have one of the dogs near — or on — me. Chester in particular is my shadow. He is not happy, usually, unless I am within sight. If I lay down on the couch, I usually have a dog at my feet and one curled up on me.

The boys love me. Simba would lay in my lap for hours in the mornings, if I only had that kind of time to sit still. And he’ll seek me out in the afternoons, sometimes, too. But he isn’t constantly with me. I would never call my cats aloof, but the truth is, during the day, they usually find one comfy space to curl up in — and then they don’t move. For hours. No matter what I’m doing (unless it involves food or catnip).

And it’s mostly nice to have constant companions.

Of course, you pay the price for that companionship. You have to walk them a couple of times a day. In the mornings, they want to play. They don’t use a litterbox, so it’s you standing out in the pouring rain while they sit there & stare at you in misery.

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