Everyone debates the pros and cons of dogs and cats, but what about their owners? According to Denise Guastello, an associate professor of psychology at Carroll University in Waukesha, Wisc., who presented the findings at the annual Association for Psychological Science meeting, “It makes sense that a dog person is going to be more lively, because they’re going to want to be out there, outside, talking to people, bringing their dog.”

A cat lover, on the other hand, may be “more introverted, and sensitive, maybe you’re more at home reading a book, and your cat doesn’t need to go outside for a walk.”

The key differences boiled down to:

  • Dog lovers were more energetic, outgoing and more likely to follow the rules.
  • Cat lovers were more introverted, more open-minded, more sensitive and less likely to follow rules. In addition, cat people also scored higher on intelligence.

We already know that cats think they’re smarter than everything else on the planet. Now we have evidence that cat owners can claim superiority to dog lovers too.

To read more about the differences between cat and dog lovers, click here.