sick as a dog

[ANNE V. GILBERT]

Nancy:


> A colleague of mine would like to know if anyone has an explanation of the
> expression 'sick as a dog,' since, as she says, dogs are no sicker than
> anyone else.

The explanation I heard(way back when)was, that when a dog got sick, it
looked and acted *very* sick.  So if you are "sick as a dog", it supposedly
means you feel *awful*!.   But then I've heard too, that there's nothing
sicker than a sick cat.  And I've seen some sick cats that live up to this
saying.
Anne G