Our four legged furry companions bring joy and entertainment to our lives, exasperate us with their antics and beguile with their unique personalities. For most of us, they’re one of the family, but how much do you really know about your pet?
Everyone knows that dogs are man’s best friend. But there’s a lot more to these loyal companions than meets the eye. For example, did you know that all dogs are descendants of wolves? Or that the average dog has equivalent intelligence to a two-year-old child?
Here are some other fascinating facts about our furry friends:
46 Fun Facts About Dogs
Dogs have been proven to boost your health. They can lower blood pressure, reduce anxiety and loneliness, and even help you to live longer!
Dogs come in all shapes and sizes, from the massive Great Dane to the tiny Chihuahua. The smallest dog on record was just 3.8 inches tall, while the largest was an impressive 7 feet long!
Dogs have approximately 100 different facial expressions, which they use to communicate with humans and other dogs.
A dog can locate the source of a sound in 1/600 of a second and can hear sounds four times farther away than a human can. They can also hear frequencies that are well outside the range of human hearing.
The average lifespan of a dog is around 10-12 years, though this depends on the size and breed of the dog. The world’s oldest dog known to have lived was Bluey, an Australian cattle dog from Rochester, Victoria, Australia. Bluey died at the age of 29 and 5 months old.
Dogs have been domesticated for centuries and were originally bred for hunting and working purposes. Nowadays, there are over 400 different breeds of dogs, each with their own unique talents and abilities.
Though we think of dogs as being loyal and faithful companions, they may even carry this further by paying attention to how their owners are treated! A recent study showed that dogs were less likely to accept treats from people who they saw treat their owner unkindly.
Dogs are able to sense emotions in people and can tell when their owners are happy, sad, angry, or stressed. They can also sense when someone is about to have a seizure or is about to have an epileptic fit making them fantastic service dogs for people with these conditions.
A dog’s nose is unique and no two dogs have the same nose print. This can be used to identify them, just like a human fingerprint.
Most dogs are right handed, just like humans. This means that they tend to favor their right paw when doing things such as shaking hands or begging for food.
Dogs have a sense of time and can tell when it’s time for their walk or mealtime. They can also get bored if they’re left alone for too long without anything to do.
A dog’s sense of smell is 10,000 times more powerful than a human’s and they can remember smells for years. This amazing sense of smell and can sniff out things that we would never even think to look for! They’re often used in law enforcement and search and rescue operations as their noses are so sensitive that they can pick up on even the faintest scent. Dogs can be trained to sniff out drugs, bombs, and even cancerous tumors.
Dogs dream just like humans do and they even make the same facial expressions while they’re asleep!
Dogs have a third eyelid that helps to protect their eyes and keep them clean. This eyelid is called the nictitating membrane and you may have seen it if your dog has ever had a “sleepy eye.”
Dogs pant to cool themselves off as they don’t have sweat glands all over their bodies like humans do.
Dogs’ tails are full of bones and muscles and can even be used to help them balance.
Dogs sweat through their paws and not through their tongues like many people think!
Dalmations are born without spots and they only start to develop them as they get older.
Puppies are born blind and deaf but they gain their sight and hearing within two weeks.
A dog’s heart beats between 60 and 120 times per minute, which is about twice as fast as a human’s heart.
Dogs have a higher body temperature than humans do, with an average temperature of 101.5 degrees Fahrenheit.
The oldest known breed of dog is the Saluki, which is thought to date back to ancient Egypt.
Dogs are mentioned 14 times in the Bible and most of these references are positive.
The most popular dog breed in the US is the Labrador Retriever.
Dogs have a field of vision that is three times wider than ours!
Dogs can run at speeds of up to 45 miles per hour!
Dogs have a total of 42 teeth.
When dogs are born, they have no teeth but by the time they’re around 6-8 weeks old, they will start to get their adult teeth.
Dogs have an amazing sense of balance and can stand on their hind legs longer than most other animals. This is due to the fact that they have double jointed hips which give them a greater range of motion.
Dogs curl up when they sleep because it helps them to keep warm. Curling up also provides them with a sense of security and safety.
A group of puppies is called a litter while a group of adult dogs is called a pack.
The Lundehune breed has 6 toes and can close its ears.
A dog’s shoulder blades are unattached to the rest of the skeleton to allow greater flexibility for running.
The shape of a dog’s face may suggest how long it will live. Dogs with longer noses, such as poodles and collies, tend to live longer than dogs with shorter noses, such as bulldogs and boxers. Nose length is also related to how well it cools itself (the longer the better).
Dogs can sense earthquakes and other natural disasters before they happen.
A dog’s whiskers are extremely sensitive and can detect even the slightest changes in air currents. This allows them to “see” in the dark and detect potential predators or prey.
When a dog wags its tail, it is actually communicating with other dogs. The direction of the wag can indicate whether the dog is happy or aggressive.
Dogs have a “yawning contagion” which means that they are more likely to yawn when they see someone else yawning.
Dogs have a wet nose because it helps to absorb scent chemicals. The moisture on the nose also evaporates and carries the scent into the air.
The most dogs ever owned by one person were 5,000 Mastiffs owned by Kubla Khan.
The most popular names for male dogs are Jake and Max while the most popular for females are Maggie and Molly.
It is a myth that dogs are color blind. Dogs can see in color, but not as vividly as humans. They are most sensitive to blue and yellow colors and less sensitive to red and green colors. It is akin to our vision at dusk.
The fastest dog on earth is the Greyhound. It can run at speeds of 45mph while the average dog can only run about 19 mph.
Only dogs and humans have prostates but dogs do not have an appendix.
Puppies sleep ninety percent of the day for their first few weeks.
Dogs are naturally submissive to any creature with higher pack status – human or canine.
Dogs have about 1,700 taste buds while humans have around 9,000.
Did you know all of these fun facts about dogs? Dogs are such amazing creatures and bring so much joy to our lives! So, the next time you’re hanging out with your furry friend, take a moment to appreciate all the amazing things that make them unique. From their incredible sense of smell to their loyal companionship, dogs truly are one-of-a-kind animals!
I love dogs because I grow up with them but unfortunately I can’t have one since my daughter is allergic to them. Thanks for sharing!