Weird Dog Facts

1. It is a myth that dogs are color blind. They can actually see in color, just not as vividly as humans. It is akin to our vision at dusk.

2. Dogs DO have better low-light vision than humans because of a special light-reflecting layer behind their retinas

3. A German Shepherd guide dog led her blind companion the entire 2100 mile Appalachian Trail

4. If never spayed or neutered, a female dog, her mate, and their puppies could produce over 66,000 dogs in 6 years!

5. Dogs' only sweat glands are between their paw pads

6. Like human babies, Chihuahuas are born with a soft spot in their skull which closes with age

7. The breed Lundehune has 6 toes and can close its ears

8. Teddy Roosevelt's dog, Pete, ripped a French ambassador's pants off at the White House

9. President Lyndon Johnson had two beagles named Him and Her

10. Franklin Roosevelt spent $15,000 for a destroyer to pick up his Scottie in the Aleutian Islands

11. In Roman times, mastiffs donned light armor and were sent after mounted knights

12. The Russians trained dogs during WWII to run suicide missions with mines strapped to their backs

13. A dog's mouth exerts 150-200 pounds of pressure per square inch with some dogs exerting up to 450 pounds per square inch.

15. A one year old dog is as mature, physically, as a 15 year old human

16. The U.S. has the highest dog population in the world

17. France has the 2nd highest

18. The average city dog lives 3 years longer than a country dog

19. 87% of dog owners say their dog curls up beside them or at their feet while they watch T.V.

20. Dogs can be trained to detect epileptic seizures

21. 15 people die in the U.S. every year from dog bites

22. In 2002 alone, more people in the U.S. were killed by dogs than by sharks in the past 100 years

23. Gidget is the name of the Taco Bell dog

24. Newfoundlands are great swimmers because of their webbed feet

25. Basset Hounds cannot swim

26. Greyhounds are the fastest dogs on earth, with speeds of up to 45 miles per hour

27. Bingo is the name of the dog on the side of the Cracker Jack box

28. The bible mentions dogs 14 times

29. Three dogs survived the sinking of the Titanic - a Newfoundland, a Pomeranian, and a Pekingese

30. The Labrador Retriever is the #1 favorite breed in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.

31. Obesity is the #1 health problem among dogs

32. An estimated 1,000,000 dogs in the U.S. have been named as the primary beneficiaries in their owner's will

33. An American Animal Hospital Assoc. poll found that 33% of dog owners admit to talking to their dogs on the phone and leaving answering machine messages for them while away

34. Dog's nose prints are as unique as a human's finger prints and can be used to accurately identify them

35. At the end of the Beatles' song "A Day in the Life", a high-pitched dog whistle was recorded by Paul McCartney for his sheepdog

36. 70% of people sign their pet's name on greeting and holiday cards

37. 58% put pets in family and holiday portraits

38. There are only 350 Cisky Terriers in the world - perhaps the rarest breed

39. The phrase "raining cats and dogs" originated in 17th century England when it is believed that many cats and dogs drowned during heavy periods of rain.

40. Dogs have no sense of "time"

41. Humans have kept dogs as pets for over 12,000 years

42. The largest breed of dog is the Irish Wolfhound

43. The world's smallest dog breed is the Chihuahua

44. The St. Bernard is the heaviest

45. Only dogs and humans have prostates

46. But dogs do not have an appendix

47. Every dog on earth likely descended from a species knows as the Tomarctus - a creature that roamed the earth over 15 million years ago

48. The oldest known breed is likely the Saluki - originally trained by Egyptians to help them track game.

49. In 1957, Laika became the first living being in space via an earth satellite

50. ... while JFK's terrier, Charlie, father 4 puppies with Laika's daughter

51. An African wolf dog known as the basenji is the only dog in the world that cannot bark

52. There are 703 breeds of purebred dogs

53. Dachshunds were originally bred for fighting badgers

54. The world's smartest dogs are thought to be (1) the border collie, (2) the poodle, and (3) the golden retriever while the dumbest dog is believed to be the Afghan hound

56. A dog's smell is more than 100,000 times stronger than that of a human's which they need because their eyesight is not as keen as a human's.

58. Dogs judge objects first by their movement, then by their brightness, and lastly by their shape

59. Chocolate contains a substance known as theobromine (similar to caffeine) which can kill dogs or at the very least make them violently ill

60. George Washington had thirty six dogs - all foxhounds - with one named Sweetlips

61. All dogs are identical in anatomy - 321 bones and 42 permanent teeth

62. Smaller breeds mature faster than larger breeds

63. Female dogs are only ready to mate - "in heat" - twice a year for a total of roughly 20 days

64. Puppies sleep ninety percent of the day for their first few weeks

65. Rin Tin Tin was the first Hollywood dog star and he really signed his movie contracts - all 22 of them - with a pawprint

67. The Wizard of Oz's Toto was played by a female Cairn Terrier named Terry

68. Their vision is not fully developed until after the 1st month

69. Dogs have two times as many muscles to move their ears as people

70. The longer a dog's nose, the more effective it's internal cooling system

71. An elderly woman was saved by her 12 pound Yorkshire Terrier who fought off an 80 pound Akita and survived with only 9 stitches

72. U.S. Customs dogs "Rocky" and "Barco" were so good at patrolling the border that Mexican drug lords put a $300,000 bounty on their heads

73. Dogs are all direct descendants of wolves

74. Wolves and dogs can mate to produce fertile offspring

75. Female wolves have been known to travel great distances to regurgitate full meals for their hungry pups

76. Cerberus was the tri-headed dog that guarded the underworld in Greek mythology

77. Female dogs bear their young for 60 days before they're born

78. Dogs' sense of hearing is more than ten times more acute than a human's

79. Humans can detect sounds at 20,000 times per second, while dogs can sense frequencies of 30,000 times per second.

80. The earliest dog fossil dates back to nearly 10,000 B.C.

81. Bloodhounds are prized their ability to single out and identify a number of scents simultaneously

82. Dalmatian puppies are born completely white.

83. The Ancient Chinese carried Pekingese puppies in the sleeves of their robes

84. Boxers are so named because of their manner of playing with their front paws

85. All breeds of dog have been found to attack livestock - from 3 month old puppies, all the way up to thirteen year old poodles

86. A dog's heart beats up to 120 times per minute, or 50% faster than the average human heartbeat of 80 times per minute

87. The oldest dog on record - a Queensland "Heeler" named Bluey - was 29 years, 5 months old

88. Davy Crockett had a dog named Sport

89. Dogs were first domesticated by cavemen

90. Dogs live 15 years on average

91. Many foot disorders inn dogs are simply an issue of long toenails

92. More than 5,000,000 puppies are born in the U.S. every year

93. More than 1 in 3 American families own a dog

94. Average body temperature for a dog is 101.2 degrees

95. The Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts both offer merit badges in dog care

96. Dogs are natural pack animals

97. They are naturally submissive to any creature with higher pack status - human or canine

98. After birth, puppies' eyes do not fully open until they're about 12 days old

99. Dogs with little human contact in the first three months typically don't make good pets

100. The Chihuahua was named after the state in Mexico where they were discovered

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