Basic Trope: Male characters are dog owners, while female characters are cat owners.
- Straight: Alice owns a Cute Kitten named Fluffy, while Bob owns a Big Friendly Dog named Max.
- Exaggerated: All female characters and all male characters in the cast own cats and dogs respectively.
- Downplayed: Alice is a Tomboy who owns a tomcat, while Bob is In Touch with His Feminine Side and owns a small, girly-breed dog.
- Justified: Bob is a Manly Man who loves active outdoor activities, so he gets a dog to play with. Alice is a Girly Girl who isn’t athletic and dislikes getting dirty, so she gets a cat to sit on her lap while she spends time indoors.
- Inverted: Alice owns a Precious Puppy named Fluffy, while Bob owns a Cool Cat named Max.
- Subverted:
- Alice's pet looks like a cat and Bob's looks like a dog, but Alice actually has a very kitten-like chihuahua, while Bob has a very Pomeranian-like munchkin cat.
- Alice's "cat" is actually a dog named "Cat", while Bob's "dog" is a cat named "Dog".
- Double Subverted: ???
- Parodied:
- Alice is a Straw Feminist who refuses to have any pet but a cat.
- Alice and Bob even act like their pets.
- Zig Zagged: Alice has a cat and Bob has a dog, but Charlie also has a cat, and Bob's dog is a female dog of a breed more popular with women.
- Averted:
- Alice and Bob don't own any pets.
- Alice and Bob's pets are neither dog nor cat.
- Alice and Bob either both own cats, or both own dogs.
- Enforced:
- The show is Merchandise-Driven, and the creators think that a toy dog will appeal more to boys, while a toy cat will appeal more to girls.
- The series plays all Animal Stereotypes straight or exaggerates them, so including this stereotype is necessary.
- Lampshaded: "I just love Alice's girly cat person energy, and Bob's manly dog owner vibe."
- Invoked: Alice wants a pet to fit her girly personality, so a pet store worker recommends a cute, fluffy cat. Likewise, Bob wants a pet as manly as him, and the pet store owner recommends a strong, loyal dog.
- Exploited: ???
- Defied: The pet store owner recommends a cute cat for Girly Girl Alice and a strong dog for Manly Man Bob, but neither of them pay attention. Bob walks right past the dog section to look at the guinea pigs, while Alice ignores the cats and gravitates towards the ball pythons.
- Discussed: "Is it hard for you cat ladies to deal with oafish dog men?"
- Conversed: "Hey Carl, ever notice how the cat is always owned by a girl and the dog is always owned by a guy?"
Back to Men Like Dogs, Women Like Cats
