15 Fun Facts About Dogs You’ve Likely Never Heard

You can live with dogs your whole life and still get blindsided by what they’re actually capable of. A sense of smell that clocks changes in your body chemistry before you notice anything. Hearing that picks up the treat bag from three rooms away but somehow goes offline at the word “bath.” The species is weirder than the calendar photos let on.

I’d know. I’ve owned a number of dogs in my lifetime, and my current dog still manages to surprise me almost every day. Most of what makes dogs strange never comes up at the vet or in training class. You have to go looking for it.

So we went looking. These are 15 facts about dogs that most owners never hear, pulled from actual research instead of the usual recycled trivia. A few will change how you read your own dog. At least one will win you a bar argument.

Have you ever watched your dog growl, softly bark, or twitch while sleeping and wonder if they’re having dreams, just like you and me? Well, the answer is YES! According to scientists, the same areas of the brain that light up for humans when we dream, also light up in dogs!

So, what do they dream about? It’s said that what’s on their minds most are their daily activities and experiences, such as playing and exploring, so basically, dogs dream about doggy-like things! 

Yes, dogs sweat! Unlike humans though, it’s mainly through their paws and not their entire bodies. When dogs are hot, the sweat helps them regulate their body temperature, which they also do through panting. So you may be wondering – should you shave a dog?

What you may not realize is that a dog’s coat keeps them cool even in warm weather. Their fur slows the transfer of heat from hot weather to the body, so shaving dogs with heavy double coats like German Shepherds and Golden Retrievers removes one of the body’s mechanisms for staying cool!

How does a dog’s vision compare to a human’s? Dogs can see in color, but not nearly as well as we can. While human eyes have three types of cones that can identify combinations of red, blue, and green, dogs have only two types of cones, (known as dichromatic vision), so their color spectrum is limited to shades of blue and yellow.

Therefore, dogs may not be able to distinguish between hues of the same color like light blue and dark blue, or might have trouble telling the difference between a red ball and a yellow ball. To help, dog owners might choose toys that are blue or yellow!

You’ve likely heard the stories of dogs licking their owner’s skin persistently, so much so that it prompted the owner to seek care from a doctor, finding cancer in their body. Yes, this has happened!

A dog’s highly sensitive sense of smell allows them to identify underlying health conditions and diseases including cancer, diabetes, seizures, Parkinson’s disease, and more. Even though some dogs can be trained to detect illness, they should not be relied upon to diagnose any specific condition. Their heightened senses, however, are certainly a marvel!

What a fun fact! Did you know this? It seems like humans, most dogs have a dominant hand – or in their case, a dominant paw! If you’ve never considered this, next time, watch your dog! Do they start walking with their left leg or their right? Watch several times and see if there’s a pattern.

Most dogs will lead with their dominant leg! Another experiment you can try? Give them their favorite toy and see which paw they use to play with it first. All we can say is – it’s a good thing left-pawed dogs don’t need to use scissors! Only lefties will understand that one!

Say what?! Yes, it’s true! If you’ve ever been around newborn puppies, you may have noticed they’re born with their eyes closed, and most open their eyes after about 10 days. When it comes to hearing, it’s the last sense to develop after they’re born, and it usually takes puppies about three weeks to begin hearing.

Just wait though! Once their hearing kicks in, they’ll be able to hear about four times better than humans can, allowing them to hear higher pitches and detect much softer sounds! So don’t share all your secrets out loud, they’ll be sure to hear them all! 

This is certainly one of those ‘Did you know moments!’ So… did you know that dogs are thought to be as smart as a 2-year-old? Pretty cool, huh? This means they can understand basic commands and learn around 165 words, with some dogs even able to learn 250 words – all through positive reinforcement and repetition.

Dogs can understand human gestures, recognize emotions, follow simple instructions, and perform basic arithmetic, similar to a 2-year-old! Dog breeds that are among the smartest? Border Collies and Poodles!

No spots… just yet! You may assume that Dalmatian puppies are born with all of their black spots, but they’re actually born all white and don’t develop their spots or patterns until about three to four weeks after they’re born. (Although some spots may be slightly visible)

The majority of their spots are developed within about a month, and they continue to develop spots until they are 18 months old. Another interesting fact? The coat color and pattern of a Dalmatian is a hereditary breed factor, so it’s all about genetics!

Let’s break this down! The Chihuahua is considered the world’s smallest dog breed, measuring on average, five to eight inches and weighing three to six pounds. The breed considered one of the largest and heaviest is the English Mastiff, standing between 27 and 35 inches tall and weighing between 120 and 230 pounds.

Last but not least, the tallest dog breed, the Irish Wolfhound, stands up to 32 inches at the shoulder for males and 30 inches for females. When standing on their hind legs, they can be up to seven feet tall! Wow!

Due to genetics, or other factors, some dogs just live longer than others. Some live a LOT longer. Though, you’ll often find debates on which dog is the actual “oldest to ever live,” two of the dogs on the list are dogs named Max and Bobi. Max was a Beagle-Dachshund-Terrier mix who almost made it to his 30th birthday. He lived to be 29 years and 282 days old.

Meanwhile, Bobi, a purebred Rafeiro do Alentejo dog, was said to have died at the age of 31 and 165 days, though there are some disputes on his confirmed age. Other dogs on the list have lived to be 27, 28, and 29 years old – nearly 200 years old in human years! Seems almost impossible, doesn’t it?

It’s true! Research shows that petting a dog can benefit your physical and mental health! By petting a dog for about 15 minutes, you can lower your blood pressure by 10%, feel less stressed, lower feelings of depression, and fight loneliness.

Just like laughter is considered medicine for the soul, petting a dog may be, too! So, find a dog and pet away! (with permission of course) And if you’re a dog owner yourself, you’ve got it made – you can feel better nearly every day!

Talk about a fact you probably didn’t learn in history class! On that fateful day in April 1912, just three small dogs survived, two Pomeranians and one Pekingese, all from first-class cabins. Among these dogs was a Pomeranian named Lady that was wrapped in a blanket and put on a lifeboat by her owner.

The Pekingese dog was on a lifeboat as well, and the final Pomeranian was rescued from a lifeboat (after being hidden) the following morning. Some bigger dogs unfortunately perished, but we’re so glad these small dogs got a second chance!

You read that right! In 2012, Idyllwild, California elected its first canine mayor, Mayor Max, a Golden Retriever. Max served as the second unofficial mayor of Idyllwild after the non-profit organization Idyllwild Animal Rescue Friends (ARF) hosted an “election” for mayor as part of a fundraising event. Fourteen dogs and two cats ran, but Max came out on top and was elected the town’s first mayor!

His duties included visiting with locals and out-of-town visitors, attending business grand openings, participating in parades, and promoting the town. Mayor Max died in 2013 after serving nine months in office, but since his death, two other Golden Retrievers have taken over his mayoral duties, Max II and Max III.

At least not in the traditional sense, anyway! The Basenji is a dog that can’t bark the way most dogs do and is often called the “barkless dog.” Instead, this breed makes a yodel-like sound when it wants to communicate. Why is this? Well, the Basenji’s unusually shaped larynx prevents it from barking like other dogs.

Some dog owners who aren’t a fan of barking might prefer this dog to others for this very reason! Especially because they’re known for being intelligent and graceful, (however, sometimes expensive). A rare breed, indeed!

It seems a Bloodhound’s sense of smell is so accurate that they are sometimes used to match evidence from a crime scene to criminals. They can track scents in the air and on the ground, can follow tracks that are over 300 hours old, and can stay on a trail for over 130 miles!

Bloodhounds have sensitive scent receptors in their noses, and when a Bloodhound sniffs something, chemical vapors from the scent lodge in the dog’s mucus. What happens next? The chemical signals are sent to the olfactory bulb in the dog’s brain, which creates an “odor image.” Talk about a science lesson. Case closed!

‘Who’d Have Thunk It?’

There’s so much we know and love about dogs, and still so much we can learn! No wonder they make the most popular pets in the United States, followed by cats. They’re loyal, affectionate, intelligent, and possess some interesting abilities!

And yes, we also love them for being so “dog-gone” cute, too! So go on, use these “fun facts” to challenge your friends and see if you can stump them. After all, the more you learn… the more you know!

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