The dog was one of the first animals domesticated by humans.
The relationship between man and his dog is a special one. It is no wonder, then that more and more healthcare practitioners are recommending that their patients adopt a dog to help them through periods of illness. There are many instances on record that describes how the companionship of a loyal, loving pet has helped ailing people to get better.
Average body temperature for a dog is between 100.2-102.8 degrees Fahrenheit.
A dog's heart beats between 70 and 120 times a minute, compared with a human heart which beats 70 to 80 times a minute.
A female carries her young about 62 days before the puppies are born.
Professional trainers will not give this guarantee if the dog is not under the control of its owner. Dog owners must ensure that their dogs are under control at all times.
The average dog lives 8 to 15 years.
A dog that destroys your home when you're away is frustrated. His frustration has been displaced onto household objects.
A puppy's eyes do not open until it is 10 to 15 days old. Its vision is usually not complete until it is about four weeks old.
At birth puppies are deaf, blind, and have almost no sense of smell. They stay near their mother and siblings because of the warmth.
Puppy love is the beginning of a lifetime affair for most dog owners.
Puppies should remain with their mother until they are at least eight weeks old. During this time, she will teach them not to bite, and how to get along with other dogs.
The most confident puppy in a litter often makes the worst pet because he sees himself as the pack leader.
Dogs become loyal not because you feed them, but because of the companionship you give them.
When a puppy is removed from its mother, don't make it spend the first night alone. Its loss of family is enough for one night.
A one-year-old dog is physically as mature as a 15 year-old human.
The only problem with loving a dog is that they live for only a short time.
Greyhounds can run up to 45 miles an hour for very short periods.
Anything over 45 minutes seems like forever to your dog. You will be greeted as enthusiastically coming back from a two-hour shopping trip as you will come back from a two-day vacation.
A stray dog that is afraid of people will trust the people associated with the dogs it plays with.
The old rule -- multiplying a dog's age by 7 to find the equivalent human age -- is fallacious. A dog is able to reproduce at 1 year and has reached full growth by 2Years. To calculate a dog's age in human terms, count the first year at 15, the second year as 10, and each year after that as 5.
If you want to be friends with somebody else's dog, let the dog make the first move, and don't be too quick to respond.
A kennel should be two times the length of the dog you are building it for. Measure the dog from its nose to the tip of its tail.
The best time for taking a puppy from its litter -- psychologically and physically -- is when it is 49 days old.
"Dogs are better than children. Even my friends with children say that. As a dog friend of mine likes to say, children are for people who can't have dogs."
Mosaics meaning "Beware the Dog" would be found on doorsteps in ancient Roman cities.
The world's first dog show was held in Britain in 1859.
Dogs' only sweat glands are between their paw pads
People in ancient China stayed warm by carrying toy breeds in their sleeves.
The smallest mature dog was a Yorkshire Terrier that was 2 1/2 inches high at its shoulder.
The largest breed of dog is the Irish Wolfhound
The world's smallest dog breed is the Chihuahua
The St. Bernard is the heaviest
The heaviest dog ever weighed 319 pounds
The tallest dog ever was a Great Dane who stood 41 inches high.
The first living creature sent into space was a female dog named Laika launched by the former USSR on November 3, 1957
There are six types of Dachshund.
The British bred Basset Hounds to have short legs so hunters could keep up with them.
The Basenji is also known as the African Barkless dog because it yodels instead of barking.
The Basenji licks itself clean, like a cat.
The Bedlington Terrier was a favorite of poachers and was known as the gypsy's dog.
Bull Terriers were bred by crossing Bulldogs with terriers.
Chow-Chows have blue-black tongues.
There are four types of Belgian Shepherd Dogs that are Identical except for their coat type and color.
The Great Dane is the national dog of Germany.
The Chihuahua is the smallest breed in the world.
Labrador Retrievers were originally bred to retrieve fishing nets.
Monks used the Lhasa Apso as a guard dog in temples.
Siberian Huskies have been used to herd reindeer in Siberia for 3000 years.
Louis Doberman, a German tax-collector, created the Doberman breed in the late 1860s to protect him while he worked
Ever sensed you dog can read your mind? Studies have shown incredible results indicating dos with telepathic capabilities. In Russia, a team of scientist conducted 1,278 telepathic experiments with dogs, of which 696 were successful. Most of the test involved testing the dog's ability to read non-verbal and non-physical commands. The scientists believe the odds of that happening by chance would be similar to correctly guessing the correct roulette wheel number over fifty percent of the time...basically a billion to one odds.
Ever use the saying "He got caught with his tail between his legs". This saying came about because a frightened dog puts his tail between his legs. Why? Well, they do that to cut off the scent glands in its anal region, a very vulnerable part of the anatomy. Every dog a personal scent that identifies them, so basically that action of dog is the equivalent of insecure humans hiding their faces.
Like human babies, Chihuahuas are born with a soft spot in their skull which closes with age
The average city dog lives 3 years longer than a country dog
Obesity is the #1 health problem among dogs.
Dog's nose prints are as unique as a human's finger prints and can be used to accurately identify them
70% of people sign their pet's name on greeting and holiday cards
The world's smartest dogs are thought to be (1) the border collie, (2) the poodle, and (3) the golden retriever Dogs have 42 teeth, cats about 30.
Dogs and humans are the only animals with prostates.
The Dalmatian dog originates from Dalmatian coast of Croatia.
According to tests made at the Institute for the Study of Animal Problems in Washington, D.C., dogs and cats, like people, are either right-handed or left-handed --- that is, they favor either their right or left paws.
Domesticated cats are never mentioned in the Bible. Dogs are mentioned 14 times, lions 55 times.
The common belief that dogs are color blind is false. Dogs can see color but it is not as vivid a color scheme as we see. It is much like our vision at twilight.
There are 701 types of pure breed dogs.
The flea can jump 350 times its body length that is like a human jumping the length of a football field.
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.
Dogs judge objects first by their movement, then by their brightness, and lastly by their shape
Chocolate contains a substance known as theobromine (similar to caffeine) which can kill dogs or at the very least make them violently ill.
All dogs are identical in anatomy - 321 bones and 42 permanent teeth.
Smaller breeds mature faster than larger breeds.
Female dogs are only ready to mate - "in heat" - twice a year
For a total of roughly 20 days Puppies sleep ninety percent of the day for their first few weeks.
Boxers are so named because of their manner of playing with their front paws.
The oldest dog on record - a Queensland "Heeler" named Bluey - was 29 years, 5 months old.
Dogs are natural pack animals.
Dogs instinctively require the pack leader's approval.
A puppy is born without teeth. When the pup is three to four weeks old, 28 teeth will break through the gums so the puppy will be able to eat solid food.
At 4-8 weeks of age, a puppy's mouth will get 28 baby teeth.
At 4-7 months of age, the baby teeth fall out and are replaced with 42 permanent adult teeth.
Did you know that dogs have three eyelids? They have an upper
and lower eyelid and a third one inside of the other two. It helps protect the eye from dirt and dust. It is also called a "haw".
People with more than one dog shouldn't try to treat them all as equals. Because pack position is important to a dog, this only encourages jealousy games.
Dogs' internal clocks are really magnificent. They know when it's time for you to arrive home, feed them, or go to bed if you are normally on a schedule.
If your dog reacts anti-socially toward visitors, put her in another room until she calms down. When you let her out, ignore her. This forces your dog to go to the visitors for social activity.
Rituals are a basic part of canine behavior. Greeting, feeding, hunting and sleeping all include social performances.
A dog's nose is not just used for smelling, but also to keep him cool. That's why a dog pants. The longer the dog's nose, the better his cooling system works.
Dogs and cats turn in circles before lying down because in the wild this instinctive action turns long grass into a bed.
The most confident puppy in a litter often makes the worst pet because he sees himself as the pack leader.
A dog can suffer from a poor self-image, just like humans. Bolster self-esteem with praise, affection and rewards.
To a young dog, exercise and play are the day's most important events. As a dog gets older, he lives for dinner time.
Dogs have about 100 different facial expressions, most of them made with the ears. Unfortunately, the likes of bulldogs and Pitbulls only have 10, due to their breeding. Therefore, these dogs easily get misinterpreted by other dogs and often get into fights.
Dogs have many strange habits. One is the tendency to lick their most private parts. Even though this sounds perverse, it serves an important purpose. The dog's genitourinary tract will not function without the stimulation that comes from frequent licking.
Small dogs live the longest. Toy breeds live up to 16 years or more. Larger dog’s average is 7 - 12 years. Veterinary medicine has extended this estimate by about three years. However, some breeds, such as Tibetan terrier live as long as twenty years.
Dogs that are left alone for long periods howl because they are lonely. The purpose of the howl in the wild is to gather the pack so that they can face impending danger together. The group howl is also a type of bonding experience.
Dogs only have sweat glands on their feet; dogs cannot lose heat rapidly by perspiring from head to toe like people do. Instead the dogs sweat by panting, which removes body heat by evaporation from the surface of the tongue. Dogs also pant when they are nervous or excited.
Studies show that a lovingly handled dog is a healthier dog. The touch of the human hand improves the functions of virtually all the sustaining systems: respiratory, circulatory, digestive and so on. In new born puppies, a frequently petted puppy is not only healthier and happier, but also better behaved. Dogs like humans, find solace in touching another living being, which is another reason why they get along so well together.
Giving dogs chocolate could be fatal for them, because theobromine, an ingredient of chocolate, stimulates the central nervous system and cardiac muscle. About 1.1 kg of milk chocolate or just 146 g of cooking chocolate (which has more theobromine per gram) could kill a 22 kg dog.
Many studies have shown the benefits and importance of pet therapy. Pets have been helpful with AIDS patients, cancer patients, the elderly and the mentally ill. One study has even determined that petting a dog can lower blood pressure. Another study found that pets can help reduce stress-related illnesses. According to a study at City Hospital in New York, heart patients who owned pets lived longer than those who had no pets. In fact, owning a pet was even more significant to long term survival than whether a person had a spouse or friends. That’s rather amazing. Pets can make a remarkable difference in our lives.
