Interesting, funny and little-known facts about dogs

The dog has long and firmly taken its place next to the man. She is an incorruptible "guard", a loyal friend, a reliable assistant and a caring companion. The life of a fourth friend is surrounded by many tales. Some of them contain real information, others more like fairy tales, surprising knowledgeable people with their unreality.

Let's get acquainted with the most amazing facts from the life of pets, known to the general public, as well as those about which you did not know.

• The tallest dog in the world is the Great Dane. The height of the adult animal at the withers is more than 80 cm. One of the representatives of the breed, a dog named Gibson, is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the highest. The length of his body from nose to tail is 2 m 15 cm.

• Today, the largest dog in the world is George the Great Blue.whose height at the withers - 1.1 m, body length - 2.21 m, weight - 110 kg.

• Chihuahuas are the smallest dogs, characterized by great courage. The name of the breed comes from the name of the state in Mexico, where the dog comes from. A chihuahua named Millie is recognized as the smallest dog. Her height does not exceed 9 cm, and weight at the age of 2 was only 400 g.

• Saint bernards are the most difficult representatives of dogs in the world.

• The most muscular dog, Big Wendy, comes from whippet hounds. Her voluminous muscles were formed due to defective genes. Despite her severe appearance, she is very kind and likes to lie on her owners' lap.

• Greyhound Hounds - The fastest short distance runners. The maximum recorded speed shown by a dog named Star was 67 km / h.

• If you want to get the smartest dog, pay attention to the representatives of the breed poodle, doberman, german shepherd, labrador or husky.

• Learns hardest afghan hound.

• The rarest and little-known breed of dog is the Chinook. In 1981, when they decided to renew the breed, there were only 12 individuals among its representatives. Even today, the breed is balancing on the brink of extinction. In the same position are the Eskimo dogs.

• The official dog breeds in the world there are 703.

• Dogs can laughby making a peculiar snort, moreover, they can recognize such “laughter” even in the recording and react to it accordingly.

• Domestic dogs are subject to stress along with their owners. In a third of dogs, stress causes stomach upsets.

• The family in which the four-legged friend lives is his pack, where the owner will be the leader, who is respected for strength and authority. The dog will gladly carry out commands and be responsible for protecting the family and territory. For the same reason, in half the cases, the domestic dog will sleep in the same bed with the owners, even if it is forbidden. Instinct, you can’t argue with him.

• If you want to get a silent dog, which will not bother you with barking, get a basenji puppy. Representatives of this breed do not bark, but rumble melodically, but even this is very rarely heard from them.

In addition to various information about the breeds of dogs and their behavior, there is scientific evidence documented.

Everyone knows that the dog is the first wild animal tamed by man. In 1975, archaeologists found the most ancient remains of domestic dogs in the world in Siberia in the Altai Mountains, in the cave of Robbery. The age of the bones was estimated at 33.5-34 thousand years.

There are two versions of domestication. First: people specially tamed a wild animal, which at first was used to help on hunting, and only then the dog became not only an assistant, but also a companion. According to another version, no one specifically tamed the dogs, the whole process took place naturally. Wolves began to settle closer to human settlements because of the opportunity to feast on the remnants of the carcasses of the extracted animals, resulting in a gradual domestication. Findings of wolf bones speak in favor of this. The remains of ancient wolves found near human sites are over 100 thousand years old.

Forty million years ago, a beast existed on the planet that resembled a modern caress. These creatures inhabited trees and burrows. In the process of evolution, these animals became the progenitors of wolves, jackals and dogs. In addition, due to the great variety of breeds that differ in appearance and size, there is a possibility that dogs lead from different ancestors.

A dog and a wolf have about 80 similar chromosomes in their DNA, and the composition of their teeth allows them to eat not only meat food. But some types of hounds, whose set of chromosomes differs from the wolf by more than half, have a jaw structure designed to consume only meat. The genetic code of dogs is divided into four groups. The first, oldest, is similar to a wolf, while the next three are obtained and fixed by selection. More “modern” sets of genes are responsible for what the dog will be able to do best: hunt, guard or graze cattle. Of the modern dog breeds, the longest history has sharpei, Pekingese and Siberian huskies.

It has long been known that dogs are color blind due to the fact that they do not have cones on the retina responsible for the perception of the red and orange spectrum.But dogs are better than us to distinguish all shades of gray. The structure of the dog’s eye is such that it better perceives moving objects. Scientists conducted an experiment and found out that a dog can see a man standing still at a distance of no more than 250 meters, while he sees a waving man for 1.5 km. Most dogs have a viewing angle of about 250 °, and hounds have 270 °. In dogs, unlike humans, a third eyelid exists to protect the eyes. It is located in the inner corner of the eye and serves to clean the surface.

Hearing in dogs is much finer than in humans. A pet is able to distinguish sounds with a frequency of up to 40 kHz (ultrasound), while a person has a limit of 20 kHz. Thanks to the subtle hearing, the dog distinguishes music well and sensitively picks up the slightest discord. For 1/600 a fraction of a second, the dog is able to determine the sound source at a distance 4 times greater than the available limit of a person.

A dog’s wet nose is the main tool for finding food, partner and social behavior. The dog is able to divide the general flow of odors into components in order to isolate the necessary. The sensitivity of the scent is such that the dog can catch billions of shares of the desired substance. Moisture on the nose helps to better capture odors and navigate them. The dog’s fingerprint is unique to each individual and can be used as an identifier, like human fingerprints.

Dogs regulate body temperature through the tongue. Therefore, dense muzzles that prevent the tongue from sticking out can lead to the death of the dog from overheating. An interesting way the dog uses to quench his thirst: he drinks water with his tongue folded in the form of an inverted spoon. In our opinion, this is inconvenient, but everything suits her.

Sensitive hearing and a subtle scent allow the dog to feel the slightest fluctuations in the atmosphere, so our four-legged friends can predict the weather. Dogs have two sets of teeth. The first set, puppy, contains only 28 teeth, and is completely replaced by five months. An adult dog has 42 teeth, of which 22 are located on the lower jaw.

The dog uses 18 types of muscles to move its ears. Lunehund dogs have 6 fingers each, while the remaining species have 4 fingers, and the fifth, profitable finger can be located at different heights, and often does not have any effect on the movement of the dog. Some breeds require removal of profitable fingers by standards. Chihuahua puppies at birth have a soft "fontanel" on the dark side of the head, just like a human baby.

Dogs can count to at least five and perform simple mathematical operations within these limits, their mental development corresponds to the intelligence of a child aged 2-5 years. Therefore, you should not require logical actions from your pet, but no one canceled the ingenuity and life experience that our four-legged friends often use.

Dogs know how to cross the road. They just do not use traffic signals for this, although they look in that direction. The signal to start the movement is the behavior of people at the crossing, the actions of drivers who slow down, and the distance to the car. City homeless dogs can not only cross the road correctly, but also use the metro services, moving from one district of the city to another in search of food.

Man and dog are linked at the genetic level. This is expressed not only in the fact that we have a lot of common genes, but also in the dogs' perception of verbal signals given by people.Scientists conducted an experiment in which puppies of a dog and a wolf were involved. Two closed containers were put in front of the kids, in one of which food was hidden. The experimenter showed with the movements of the body in which of them the delicacy was stored. Wolfs lost to puppies, since for them understanding a person is not an important skill for survival.

A dog driving is no longer a marvel. In New Zealand, three dogs were taught not only to drive in a straight line, but also to turn.

It has long been noticed that over time, dogs and their owners become similar not only in character, but also acquire an external resemblance. Dogs experience emotions similar to human ones. They know how to be sad, rejoice, angry, love, and much more, and their expressive "pugs" convey the whole gamut of feelings to people. Dogs, like humans, understand what they point to with their finger. No other animal on Earth perceives this gesture correctly.

Do not pass by the fact that your pet can feel the negative emotion directed at you, even if it is not striking.

The devotion of the dog is beyond description. Remember the films “White Bim, Black Ear” or “Hachiko”, made on the basis of real stories. The dog can determine the cancer in the owner at an early stage, most importantly, in time to understand the signals given by a faithful friend. If you had a hard day or it was ruined, pet your pet, and all the bad things will go away, the load of worries will be removed, and your mood will rise. The dog in the house is the best psychotherapist. He will listen, caress, support and will not annoy with advice and moralizing.

Get to know some quite interesting facts about dogs that few people know.

• At the end of A Day in the Life, Paul McCartney recorded an ultrasound combination especially for his beloved dog.
• The German Shepherd Rin-Tin-Tin is the first dog actor to star in 22 films. The dog signed all the contracts with the movie studio on his own, leaving a paw print on the document.
• In ancient China, the emperor carried a Pekingese dog in his sleeve, which he could suddenly throw in the face of the attacker, as a last resort.
• In the XI century, the Norwegian kingdom was ruled by a dog named Saur for three years.
• Spiked collars were invented by the ancient Greeks to protect the dog’s neck from wolf grip.
• Dog owners in India can use the special dating service created for four-legged pets. The services of the “Internet matchmaker” for dogs turned out to be very popular.
• In Hong Kong, one pet store allowed dogs to be taken for a trial period so that future owners could make the right decision. As a result, puppy sales increased five-fold, and only about 10% of the animals rented returned.
• Friendship is not only between man and dog, but also among dogs and other animals. The most famous representatives of such friendships are the blind dog Bucks and his guide, Goose Buttons. For several years this couple has been coexisting together. Butts helps his disabled friend on a walk, indicating the direction of movement and guarding against obstacles.

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