I love both but I'm allergic to cats. We have a basset hound named Moose who is a lot of work and a lot of fun. He sleeps on his back with his "naughty bits" hangin' out for the world to see, head thrown back, ears everywhere. He's discovered the joys of drinking out of the toilet (so we have to be careful and put the seat down). He "forgets" his housebreaking training if we aren't fast enough to the back door. He counter surfs. He sheds. He drools.
And he is very much a part of the family (not that any of the rest of us drink out of the toilet, mind you). Wherever we are, he comes over and has to sit on someone's foot and snuggle up. When I put Jackson to bed, Moose climbs up and lies down next to him and I read both of them a story. When the kids are sad, Moose is there to nuzzle them and let them know they are loved. When I got home from being out of town for two days, Moose jumped up on the sofa next to me and put as much of himself as he could (this is not a small dog) into my lap and fell asleep with a contented sigh.
Nina