In which I settle the question on everyone's mind once and for all. (Not really.) Go cats! Which side are you on?
Amy Sly for BuzzFeed
The joke that you tell about how the Internet is a waste of time if you are the kind of person who makes jokes about how the Internet is a waste of time is always something like, "The only thing the Internet is good for is cat videos and pornography." And I don't think it is being pedantic to point out that this particular line doesn't work if you substitute "dog videos." People would think you are weird. They would be like, "Why are you watching dog videos?" "Dog videos isn't a thing," they would say. But so – and I will try to look at some actual statistics as we get more into it – but this brings me to my first tentative answer to the "Cats On The Internet" question (which, I should also point out, is a question that people ask a lot.)
1. It's The Culture
Through various lucky accidents, cat stuff started to permeate Internet culture pretty early on, and dogs often found themselves imitating rather than innovating in the field. Cheezburger.com (and yes, sure, 4chan, etc., but let's try to stay focused) certainly has an important role to play in this story, with the introduction to the wider Web of those semi-literate feline sensations the LOLcats, who at this point even your mom has heard of. And while Happy Cat – of whom your mom is also, arguably, at least tangentially aware – is still the most popular image on Cheezburger, according to the site's Editor in Chief, Emily Huh, the most popular post on sister (dog-themed) site I Has A Hot Dog has nowhere near the same traction, either in terms of Facebook shares or in the annals of Internet culture as a whole.
Cheezburger's Top 5 All-Time Cat Posts
See them on Cheezburger here, here, here, here, and here.
Cheezburger's Top 5 All-Time Dog Posts
See them on Cheezburger here, here, here, here, and here.
