I originally joined Reddit in 2011, and in the beginning it was dominated by cat content. It was rare to see a post about dogs. Sometime in the mid 20-teens this phenomenon reversed. It’s always been a “pet theory” of mine that this reversal was due to Reddit becoming mainstream, and that it’s initial nerdy/techie user base preferred cats to dogs.

I think my theory is further supported by Lemmy. It’s pretty clear that most of Lemmy’s user base are techies, and currently it’s dominated by cat content. Just a shower thought. May be wrong.

NOTE: I love dogs and cats. This post isn’t arguing favoritism.

  • Kyle@lemmy.ca
    181·
    1 year ago

    I just got a puppy! I don’t see a dog or puppy 101 lemmy maybe there’s one now? And back when I was on that other site I never subscribed or posted on awww but did participate in breed and puppy specific communities because I wanted to get and give more information, not just post cute pics.

    Also I think there is a bias because of the physicality and interactive nature of dogs is why there is often more pictures of cats than there are dogs. A lot of dog owners are spending most of the time training them or going out and doing things with them and might not have the camera handy. Most dog owners have taken their dogs on two walks and at least two poops a day, puppy owners are getting up at night for potty and are exhausted.

    I feel like cat time is entirely spent in liminal time at home when it’s easy to just pull out your phone and take a few snaps. Often with a dog you’re actually doing something with them and pulling out the phone or taking pictures involves multitasking with the ball, leash or general management while on a walk or hike.