It's true that there's never been the cat equivalent of Lassie on television, unless you consider Toonces, the driving cat skit on Saturday Night Live. And it appears there are fewer literary stanzas devoted to cats than there are to canines.

But if our informal survey Tuesday on Mary-Charlotte Domandi's Santa Fe Radio Café on KSFR is any indication, then Melanie Brown's comment holds true: Cats rule, dogs drool.

While I take no credit for topping the dog versus cats debate on the public radio station's annual fundraising drive, listeners during the hour-long debate overwhelming choose cats as the best companion animal, backing up their votes with dollars. The fund drive continues through this week, a great time to tune in and open up your wallets in support of the great programming KSFR offers.

Tuesday's challenge brought in more than $1,000, with feline votes — a dollar a vote — crowding out the yelping dog tally by more than $200.

Some say the vote was fixed, but I have to give credit for Santa Fe's fantastic feline community. Sarah Baldwin and I were the self-appointed cat advocates, while Domandi and Bill Hutchison of the Santa Fe animal shelter argued for canine supremacy.

The special dog advocates brought up story after story about how dogs dominate popular culture, save babies and make the world a better place. Baldwin, a cat rescuer, and I worked a different angle, pointing out the spiritual superiority of felines and their unique personality traits.

Thanks to loyal Scoop readers and the cats versus dogs contest we've been promoting, I was ahead of the game. While I wasn't able to read all the great responses my plea generated, a few helped turn the tables, I'm sure.

My favorite, and my first prize offering, goes to Carlsbad resident Barbara Weaver, who argued that while dogs offer a sense of security, cats never eat your chickens, never steal chicken eggs, "pick" their person and act as an ambassador in your home.

Jennifer Lauer Anderson also offered solid reasons why cats are better and she earns my second place award. There's nothing like the sound of a purr to take you into sleep, Anderson wrote, noting that the sound is the "lullaby of gods." She also noted that cats don't bug you, although I'm sure that's up for debate. But she did elaborate to say that cat's don't jump on you, soil your clothes or slobber on you or even pester you when you're trying to work — unless they want to eat. Her third reason was among the strongest I've read: That a cat's love and trust has to be earned. "Once you have that," she wrote, "you know you have found a real gift — a steadfast companion and a bond that value and treasure unlike any other."

My new-found animal-welfare compatriot Beth McDonald earns my third prize award for the fun poem she penned in honor of the debate:

Goodness, gracious, me-oh-my!/Dogs versus cats seems like a tie./Sunday morning cat-on-a-shelf, / Monday evening dog by himself./Tuesday comes without a bark,/I'm dogless in Santa Fe when my dog goes dark./Wednesday sadness grips my soul,/six rescued ferals wait for a bowl./Thursday reaps what Tuesday lost,/Two snuggle indoor cats asleep on my lap./Friday rises fast with the sun,/Saturday's feelings still not done./Who's best is what's missing/Who wins has already come.

Of course, I do have to give a shout-out to Linda Kastner, who noted that debating the merits of the two animal companions is like comparing apples and oranges.

But the debate was simply great fun for a good cause, and I thank all those who sent in wonderful stories and ideas. Read some of the stories and arguments online at www.santafescoop.com.

By the way, dog people failed to live up to the contest, with hardly anyone offering their three top reasons why dogs make better animal companions. And they wonder why they lost Tuesday's debate!


Two Santa Fe dogs are among the 25 finalists in the New Mexico Lottery's Lucky Dog Photo Contest.

Chance, a Shar-Pei-Labrador mix, and Snowball, a Chihuahua, were among the top vote-getters in the contest, which generated more than 4,700 entries and 100,000 votes. Snowball received 808 votes, while Chance netted 540.

The New Mexico Lottery will begin reviewing finalist photos to pick six canine faces to feature on the "Lucky Dog" Scratcher's six tickets, according to a news release. The criteria used for the six winners, which will be announced in May, include photo quality, diversity of dog breed and statewide representation.

I'm sure one of those Santa Fe dogs will make the cut.


A pit bull thrown from a pickup near Española has a new lease on life thanks to a guardian angel but needs one more miracle to give her story a happy ending.

Fellow Scoop member Lily witnessed the dog being thrown from a truck last week as she was driving from Española and pulled over to save the dog. Her main concern was for the dog, she said, so she missed recording the pickup's license plate. The dog was lucky she wasn't hit by another car and didn't suffer any serious injuries.

Lily took the dog to the Española Valley Humane Society where the dog, now named Debbie, found a temporary foster home in Chimayó. The shelter staff said Debbie is sweet and social and gets along well with other dogs.

But Debbie needs a forever home. To learn more about the dog, contact the Española shelter at 505-753-8662, or read Lily's blogs about the dog on Scoop, www.santafescoop.com.

Ben Swan, special projects manager for the Santa Fe animal shelter, writes about animal-welfare issues. Contact him at santafescoop@gmail.com.