When it comes to writing about animals, the issue of gender pronouns often pops up. Should you call the family cat in your story a he, she, or it?  What about the neighborhood coyote? The doe in the woods? Or the yapping terrier in the passing car? As writers, we may not put much thought into something as seemingly insignificant as animal gender. Who really cares what we call them, right? Actually, our readers do, more than we might think. And it isn’t worth it to assume othe