Dog Fun Facts

**Mouse** · July 27, 2025, 12:28 PM

Dogs have fascinating traits! They have a keen sense of smell, with noses more sensitive than humans, and even unique nose prints. They sweat through their paws and can see some colors, debunking the myth that they only see in black and white. Puppies are born deaf and develop their hearing within a few weeks.
Here are some more fun facts about dogs:

Disease Detection: Dogs can be trained to detect diseases like cancer.

Ancient History: Dogs are direct descendants of wolves and were one of the first animals domesticated by humans.

Unique Breeds: Some breeds have unique characteristics, like the Basenji, known as the "barkless dog," or the Newfoundland, known for their swimming abilities.

Love Hormone: When you pet your dog or look into their eyes, both of you release oxytocin, the "love hormone".

Oldest Breed: The Saluki is considered one of the oldest dog breeds, appearing in ancient Egyptian tombs.

Contagious Yawning: Yawning can be contagious among dogs.

Unique Nose Prints: Just like human fingerprints, each dog has a unique nose print.
Sweating Through Paws: Dogs cool themselves by panting and sweating through their paws.
Color Vision: Dogs can see some colors, although their vision is different from humans.
Dreaming: Dogs experience REM sleep, which indicates they dream like humans.
Puppies Are Born Deaf- Puppies Are Born Deaf- When they’re born, puppies’ ear canals are completely closed in order to protect their still-developing ears and auditory systems. In fact, it’s thought that puppies can’t hear anything until they’re about three weeks old. Once their hearing is fully developed, they can hear almost 4 times better than the average human!
Your Dog Understands You Better Than You Think- Most owners can attest that saying words like “walk,” “sit,” or “treat” will elicit a response from their pup. Dogs can actually understand quite a bit of what we say. In fact, according to one researcher, the average trained dog can learn up to 165 words.
Dogs Can Recognize Human Emotions- Dog owners almost universally claim that their four-legged companions know what they’re feeling. There’s actually scientific evidence to back them up! When shown images of unfamiliar human and dog faces expressing different emotions combined with sounds commonly associated with these emotions, dogs looked at the faces for much longer when the facial expressions matched the vocal tones.
Dogs Have a Great Sense of Smell- We know that dogs have a more acute sense of smell compared to humans. But did you know that dog noses are actually more than 100,000 times stronger than ours? In addition, the part of the brain that processes smell is about seven times larger in dogs than people. Because of their powerful noses, dogs have been trained by humans to help us accomplish a number of important jobs, including search-and-rescue missions, archaeological digs, and even bomb-detection operations.
Dogs Have Three Eyelids- Humans have two eyelids – upper and lower – to protect from elements like UV, wind, and debris. Dogs also have these upper and lower lids, but they also have a third located in the inner corner of their eye. This third lid is called the nictitating membrane and it provides additional protection, though it’s very thin and isn’t usually visible. Humans actually used to have this third eyelid as well, but it shrank over generations of evolution to become a small fold in the inner lid called the plica semilunaris.
All Modern Dogs are Descended From Wolves-Although scientists are still trying to determine the exact details of when and how dogs evolved from wolves, we know that all modern dogs are descended from the same extinct wolf ancestor that’s also related to the modern gray wolf. It’s thought that the evolutionary divergence between modern wolves and domesticated dogs took place approximately 30,000 years ago.
The Shortest Dog in the World is Less Than 4 Inches Tall- According to Guinness Book of World Records, the world’s shortest dog, a chihuahua named Pearl from the US, is just 3.59 inches tall. Chihuahuas are intelligent, athletic, and notoriously feisty. They love warm weather, but can do just fine in colder climates when they’re given plenty of warm sweaters and blankets.