Does "prefer" go with "better than"?

Question

I prefer dogs better than cats

I like dogs better than cats.

Are any of the above sentences correct?

Answer 1

Both are incorrect. As a rule "prefer" should be followed by "to" or "over".

I prefer dogs to cats

or

I prefer dogs over cats

Answer 2

I think it'd be more natural to say:

i. I prefer dogs over cats
ii. I like dogs more than I like cats.

Omitting "I like" in the second sentence will cause ambiguity, but it's still grammatical.