Many of us choose to own a dog as a pet and find them rewarding in so many ways. While on many levels we know our dogs well, there are some facts about dogs that you may never have heard. Let’s have a look at some interesting quirks that make man’s best friend so unique.

16 Facts about dogs

1.     Why are dogs noses wet?

The moisture on their nose helps them to absorb scent chemicals! A dog’s nose secretes a special mucus that helps to absorb these chemicals, and then they lick their noses to sample these chemicals helping them understand what the smell is.
Source: Vetstreet

2.     The greatest sense of smell

It is estimated the Bloodhounds sense of smell is at least 1000 time stronger than humans.  Bloodhounds have been known to be able to follow tracks that are over 300 hours old and can stay on a trail for over 200km! Source: Wonderopolis

3.     Tallest dog in the world

The world’s tallest dog is currently recorded to be Zeus, the Great Dane from the USA who measured at 1.118m tall on 4 October 2011. Source: Guinness World Records

4.     Curl up, snuggle up

Have you ever noticed that dogs like curl up into a ball when they sleep? It is understood that this is an age-old instinct to keep themselves warm and to protect their vital organs while they sleep. Source: Vetstreet

5.     Why do dogs eat grass?

Some dogs eat grass when they have an upset stomach or a build-up of gas.  The grass can induce vomiting which can help your dog to get rid of whatever was bothering him.  Other dogs simply eat grass because they enjoy the taste and texture. Source: Purina

6.     Did you hear that?

Compared to humans, dogs have a superior sense of hearing and are capable of hearing a range of sounds well above the abilities of the human ear. Experiments have shown that a dog can locate the source of a sound in six-hundredths of a second. Short-coated breeds of dog that have large, upright ears tend to have the best sense of hearing. Source: Advancepet

7.     What did you say?

On average around 15-30% of Dalmatians are deaf in one ear and 5% are deaf in both. In Dalmatians, deafness is associated with the extreme piebald gene which is responsible for their white coat and for some, blue eyes. Dalmatians with larger dark patches are less likely to be deaf. Source: Universities Federation for Animal Welfare

8.     Pearly whites

Puppies have 28 deciduous teeth (milk teeth) and adult dogs have a total of 42 permanent teeth.
Source: American Kennel Club

9.     Black tongues

The Chow Chow and the Shar-Pei are the only two dog breeds that have fully black tongues but strangely, the cause of this colouration is currently unknown. In the case of the Chow Chow, they are actually born with pink tongues. They turn blue-black at 8-10 weeks of age.
Source: Homewardbound2u

10.  How many?

Dogs have 2 eyelids, right?  Well, no, they in fact have 3 eyelids! The third lid is called the ‘haw’ or nictitating membrane, and it’s responsible for keeping the eye protected and lubricated. Source: iheartdogs

11.  Hmm, Tasty!

A dog’s sense of taste isn’t as refined as #hoomans.  Dogs have about 1,700 taste buds while humans have approximately 9,000.
Source: American Kennel Club

12.  It’s not so black and white

It’s a myth that dogs only see in black and white. In fact, it’s believed that dog’s see primarily in blue, greenish-yellow, yellow and various shades of grey.
Source: Rover

13.  Don’t grow up too fast!

Our sweet little doggies don’t stay puppies for long. Puppies can grow to half their body weight in the first nine months!  During this rapid body growth phase, puppies can sleep 18 to 20 hours a day. It then takes another year or more to gain the other half of their body weight. Source: Fidosavvy

14.  On your marks, get set, go!

The Greyhound is the fastest breed of dog and can run at speeds with a maximum around 72km/h. Source: Petcentral

15.  Why do they do that?

When dogs kick after going to the bathroom, they are using the scent glands on their paws to further mark their territory.
Source: Healthy Pet

16.  Don’t sweat it!

Dogs actually do sweat but not in the same way that humans do.  Merocrine glands located in their paw pads activate when they are feeling hot to cool them down.  Dogs also have apocrine sweat glands but these are used to release pheromone rather than for cooling down. Source: American Kennel Club

Our dogs are amazing creatures with some remarkable traits. If you have some interesting facts about dogs we’ve missed make sure to comment below and lets us all know about your fur friends.