I know that we have limited control over our kids’ personalities. I believe that we can influence them to some degree in the daily course of things, and that extreme behavior (e.g., abuse) can cause extreme changes, but I also think we kind of get what we get.
I would not have extended this theory to pets. I always thought that my dad didn’t like cats because his mother hadn’t, carefully ignoring the fact that his sister liked cats just fine. I would think that any child raised in a house with cats, barring any major incidents, would be a cat person.
Do you see where this is going? My child, whose very pseudonym means cat, is not what I would call a fan. While visiting children are desperate to see the kitties, Gatito is constantly ordering away: “Don’t go on my road!” he tells Crazy when he lies down on his road rug. “Get Hippo down!” he demands, when he is joined on the window seat at the kitchen table.
But we went into a pet store this weekend* and the kid was hooked on the dogs. Could hardly drag him out of there. Help! My son is a dog person!**
* Yes, yes, puppy mills, I know. Our cats are rescued and I would never buy any animal when there are so many in need of homes at the shelters. I only went in to entertain the kiddo as we strolled through Manhattan.
** I like dogs okay, but I wouldn’t want the responsibility of caring for one full-time. If my next door neighbor had a dog that I could take for walks or runs once a week, that would be perfect! 
