Tegan ChidesterWe were curious about a bunch of random questions about dogs—questions that pop into our heads, but we’re too lazy to Google most of the time. Keep reading to find out dog facts that answer questions like “Can dogs be left or right-handed?” and “What colors do dogs see?”
Jump to a Question:
- Do dogs have handedness?
- Does daylight savings affect dogs?
- What flavors can dogs taste?
- What colors can dogs see?
- What kind of music do dogs like?
- What do dogs think about TVs?
- Why do dogs dislike mailmen?
- Why do dogs follow you to the bathroom?
- Why do dogs tilt their heads?
- How do dogs become friends with other animals?
Do dogs have handedness/a dominant paw?
Short Answer: Sometimes!
According to the AKC, since dogs’ brains have specialized hemispheres just like us, some dogs do favor their left or right front paw. Interestingly, dogs are more equally likely to be lefties, righties, or ambilateral (dog version of ambidextrous).
Want to test out your dog’s handedness? Take a toy that naturally moves around when played with, and then stuff it with treats. A good example of this kind of toy is a Nina Ottosson Treat Tumble. Then, give the toy to your dog and see how much they use their right, left, or both front paws to stabilize or move the toy!
Are dogs affected by daylight savings changes?
Short Answer: Yes, indirectly.
Since dogs don’t rely on their smartphones to check the time all day, Spring forward and Fall back shouldn’t affect them very much, right? Not exactly. Although dogs are much more in tune with their biological clocks, determined by the sunrise and sunset, the way we humans change our daily routines affects them.
You may notice that your dog has surprising accuracy in knowing what time you get home from work or when it’s dinner time. When the clock suddenly jolts forward, your dog might get confused as to why they have to wait another hour for their meal. With all of our human routines shifting an hour, dogs have to learn to adjust with us.
Read about this topic in more detail and learn how to help your dog adjust to time changes on Pet Health Network.
What flavors can dogs taste?
Short Answer: Salty, sour, sweet, and bitter.
The AKC says that dogs only have 1/6th the number of taste buds that we do, which is an interesting dog fact considering that they can smell about 40 times better than humans. They can taste salty, sour, sweet, and bitter flavors, and surprisingly, they have special taste buds for water the tip of their tongue! However, smell is more important to a dog’s liking of certain foods. Since a dog’s snoot is so complex, they can actually taste smells! Mind. Blown.
What colors do dogs see?
Short Answer: Blue and yellow shades.
You may have heard that dogs are colorblind, but colorblind doesn’t always mean black and white. Eyes are made up of rods, responsible for seeing in low light and detecting motion, and cones, responsible for seeing color. VCA Hospitals explains that humans have 3 types of cones, which help us see red, blue, and green color combinations. Dogs, however, only have 2 types of cones, they see blue and yellow shades. Although we have more types of cones, dogs have more rods. Dogs are also more near-sighted than we are.
So what does the world look like to dogs? Blues and yellows are blues and yellows. However, purple looks blue, and orange, green, and red can look yellowy or brown-gray. Want to try it out on your own picture? There’s a handy tool for that.
Check out more differences in dog and human vision from VCA Hospitals.
What kind of music do dogs like?
Short Answer: Soft Rock & Reggae
The Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was able to conduct a study to determine the stress levels of dogs while listening to different types of music. They listened to classical music, soft rock, reggae, and Motown. In general, it appears that dogs might each have unique preferences in music. Overall, reggae and soft rock decreased stress levels the most!
Read more about this study over on Reader’s Digest.
What do dogs think about TVs?
Short Answer: The TV looks like it’s flickering like crazy.
This actually comes back to the rods and cones in dogs’ eyes again. Since dogs have more rods, and therefore are better able to see in low light conditions and are better at detecting motion, the images on the TV don’t appear very real to dogs. How’s that for interesting dog facts?
According to Psychology Today, dogs have better flicker perception. Images on the TV are refreshed at about 60 times per second, which just above the human threshold of flicker detection, and that’s why the shows appear continuous to us. However, dogs can perceive flickers at a higher rate than what is shown on a TV screen. So what looks like an incredibly-choreographed action movie to humans may not look realistic at all to dogs. With technology improving every year, this TV refresh rate improves, so dogs may be detecting less flicker.
Dog Facts Speed Round
Why do some dogs not like mailmen?
Mailmen encroach on your pup’s property. Many dogs have the instinct to protect their territory and their humans. Learn how to improve your dog’s relationship with the mail carrier at Daily Dog Stuff.
Why do dogs like to go into the bathroom with you?
This could be for a variety of reasons. Some dogs will want to stay with the pack, some may get anxious to be without their mom or dad. Other dogs are just curious. Some dogs know that you are the treat holder, so the more they’re with you, the higher the probability they’ll get one.
Why do dogs tilt their heads?
This is not fully understood, but it could also be for multiple reasons. Dogs may tilt their heads to understand your emotion or filter some of the keywords you are saying. They may also do the head tilt to hear or see you more clearly. Sometimes, dogs associate their head tilt with positive reinforcement. You might ask your dog “Do you wanna go on a walk?” and they tilt their head. 2 minutes later when you’re out the door, your pooch might think the head tilt led to the walk. Good dog!
How do dogs become friends with other animals?
It is thought that animals form friendships across species more easily when they’re young because they’re more open to different experiences. Also, some pairs of animals may just get along despite our preconceived ideas. You can’t help it if you and your BFF just click!
That’s all the dog facts for today!
What dog facts did you find the most interesting? Let us know if you have more burning questions about dogs!
Stuck at home? Check out our post on mentally stimulating toys for your pup!
Written by Tegan Chidester
