We have a dog door in the laundry room leading outside, and a pocket door leading to the laundry room. The dog can open the pocket door if she wants to; I’ve witnessed it when she really wanted to rush outside and bark at something. Yet when it’s closed and we’re around, she asks us to open it. You silly dog, I know you can do it because I’ve seen you do it. You ain’t fooling anyone. Why do I have to get off the couch to do something for you that we both know you can do yourself? I swear they’re just like children.

There's a lot of variance.

My first cat could open doors and the fridge, was a master at hiding when something was up (he really did not like going to the vet) and once found, he would refuse to come out even for ham. Very cunning and smart, but also a poor hunter of mice and moles, he simply had no patience.

The second cat knew that he could technically open a door with his paw, if it was ajar, but he didn't realize that he should move his head out of the way. He also thought that every exterior exit lead to a different world: if it was raining at the backdoor, then he asked you to open the garage door and so on, each time huffing in disappointment when it turned out to be raining there as well. He also didn't like going to the vet and would start running away when he saw his crate, but when he inevitably encountered a closed door, then he would stay still and ask the nearest human to open it for him. Unlike the smart one, he was a very good mouser when he was young, a very patient and concentrated hunter.