I'm a dog person.
Yes cats are smarter than dogs and can survive by themselves in a domestic surrounding while dogs can not...wait will not. The main reason why dogs do not get their food by themselves is because the owner trains them not to do that. Dogs are so loyal they would rather starve than disobey their owner.
Plus with dogs you do not have to worry about them scratching you or tearing up the place because you can train them. Lastly when I was but a lad I had a cat and a dog, One day I went exploring in the bayou behind my house and when I fell into the rushing current of the water it was not my cat who saved my life but my best friend in the whole world, Chance my dog.
Dogs. Cats are cute as kittens because they are cute and playful but as they get older, they get lazy and useless. While dogs will stay happy and playful from life till you cook them(kidding, though I am pro-dog meat).
I tolerate outdoor cats, sometimes even like them, but only if they are 100% outoor. My outlook on cats soured when I was a kid because our cat managed to piss on my bed 3 times and crap on it once. For some reason it was only my bed and no one elses.
I vote cats, as they are clearly smarter than dogs: you don't see a team of cats pulling people around on sleds do you? That's because they know they don't get the reward; the human does.
Personally, if i had to pick one of the two, i'd have to go with dogs.
I lived with twenty plus cats at one point, and the smell was unbearable. I spent most of my time outside with my faithful mutt of a dog, who died last year, he was 21. May Doggy-God rest his soul.
But, if i had my choice, I'd go with a sea turtle. That way, the damn thing would outlive me :D
Cats are the best, no contest. They are affectionate and self-sufficient.
FACT: 95% of cats are cute, but the only dogs that are cute also happen to be intolerable cunts.
Related: Catgirls are also the best.
Kinda Related: One time a saw a stray cat, it was cute, and it meowed at me. THEN ITS RIGHT EYE TURNED AROUND AND ALL I COULD SEE WAS WHITE.
I almost screamed.
It was a demon.
True Story (except it might not have been a demon)
Dogs, sure raising can be a pain (ESPECIALLY pitbulls) but still, no matter how much you initially hate them at first, they begin to grow on you slowly.
I actually wonder if a similar practice is for cats if not in some variation. I'd be down to have a cat if I could, if only to break the cliche that one likes cats simply because of anime or manga.
Cats. They come when they want to, not when they're told, they take care of mice, they're easy to hold. That being said, I play fight with my friend's dog every time I visit, and we both have a blast.