Comparison Essay

Sample Essay

Date

Class

Comparison/Contrast

Searching for the Perfect Pet

When my husband and I were dating, we learned pretty quickly that we disagreed on one

fundamental issue: pets. I'm a cat person while he loves dogs. Many of our dates involved

arguing over which species was better. Quite seriously, our argument about pets may not seem

like a major issue to a lot of people, but it was for us. We definitely wanted a pet once we were

married, so we each argued our side vigorously. Finally, in an effort to resolve our differences,

we sat down and compared cats and dogs based on smell, behavior, and dependence, and the

answer became obvious.

First I pointed out the problem with smell. Dogs are stinky. With all that hair and all their

energy, they cannot help but stink. Furthermore, their odor would make our whole house stink

unless my husband committed to weekly dog baths or trips to the groomer. Cats, on the other

hand, regularly clean themselves and do not stink. At that point, my husband corrected me. Cats

need litter boxes, and litter boxes stink. He continued by adding that the pungent aroma of

kitty’s seafood dinner left an unpleasant case of bad kitty breath. I reluctantly admitted that his

points were true before moving on in our discussion.

Dogs, my husband pointed out, are known for their loyalty, trainability, and heroic

behavior. Dogs are often trained as service animals and police K-9 units. Many dogs have saved

a human lives or intervened in criminal activities he explained. I had to acknowledge that, yes,

dogs have saved human lives, but Reader's Digest has published stories about cats saving lives

too. In one story that I remember, a cat pawed her owner's chest until the owner awoke to find

the house full of flames. I also related a story of a feline that could smell when her diabetic

owner was in need of insulin. Once again, my husband and I soon realized that both types of

pets shared commonalities.

As the discussion progressed, we talked about the dependence of each animal. I

reminded my husband that a dog must be walked and bathed regularly. I added that dogs must be

fed on a schedule. I went on to explain that cats are independent animals that do not require

scheduled walks around the block, nor do they need scheduled feedings since they will “graze”

from their food dishes unlike dogs that will gobble every piece of kibble up rapidly. My

husband exclaimed that in spite of their dependence on their humans dogs are fun. They will

listen to their human’s problems while on walks; they will go swimming; they will play Frisbee.

His list went on and on, and I had to agree. However, I interjected that cat owners find the soft

kneading of little paws on our laps comforting, and we enjoy the entertainment that comes from

a cat chasing a little, red laser light or a piece of string.

In the end, my husband had to admit I was right about cats. The bad thing was that I had

to concede that he was right about dogs. So we came up with the obvious answer. We'd have to

get both. So he now has his dog, a big, slobbery Labrador retriever, and I have little Tootsie, a

sweet orange cat who cuddles up with me and purrs when I watch chick flicks. Now our little

family is a picture of domesticated bliss.

572 words

Modified from My Lab and Mastering