Today we learn 10 cool dog facts. Did you know dogs use the magnetic field for navigation? When were dogs domesticated? How small is Milly, the world’s smallest living dog? And why did they clone her 49 times?
If you prefer to see 10 dog facts through a video, watch it on my Youtube channel below:
10 COOL DOG FACTS
Dogs and humans have relied upon each other since the end of the last ice age. Domestication has allowed dogs to adapt some unique traits that truly make them “mans-best friends.”
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10. Dogs use compasses
In 2013, it was discovered that dogs prefer to relieve themselves while facing north or south. This directional pooping happens less frequently when the earth’s magnetic field is disturbed by something like a solar flare.
But why would a dog align itself with the magnetic field to poop? I have no idea!
In a follow-up study, it was discovered that dogs also use the magnetic field to create navigational shortcuts. When scouting more than half a mile into the woods, dogs can get home by either back-tracking using their sense of smell and memory or they can use the magnetic field.
Using GPS tracking, it was observed that sometimes dogs run north-south for about 65 feet to get their bearings, and then head directly home along a new path.
9. The Love Hormone
Both human and dog brains use the hormone “oxytocin.” This neuropeptide is referred to as the “love hormone.” It is released during childbirth and orgasm.
Oxytocin is released by both dogs and humans while gazing into the eyes of each other and while cuddling.
It reduces stress and anxiety, and at the same time increases pain tolerance and emotional bonding.
8. The Bonn-Oberkassel Double Burial
The oldest, most widely accepted evidence of a domestic dog, is from 14,300 years ago. A fossil was discovered in Germany containing a man, woman, artifacts, and a pet dog.
Evidence suggests this puppy suffered from the “canine distemper virus” and could not have survived as long as it did without the care of humans.
And the humans probably loved it because it was buried with them and their precious belongings.
The Bonn-Oberkassel Double Burial occurred near the end of the last ice age when humans were still hunter-gatherers.
7. The Domestication Event
The dog was the first animal to be domesticated by ancient humans. I think this is one of the best dog facts on this list.
Based on genetic analysis, this may have happened about 29,000 years ago. A now-extinct species of the Siberian wolf seems to have split into a lineage of gray wolves and Siberian huskies.
Scientists don’t know if dogs were domesticated from a “wolf-like ancestor” in a single historic event, or if it happened several times in different locations around the world.
6. Symbiosis and Evolution
After humans selected the first dogs to live alongside them, both species started to benefit.
Over tens of thousands of years, hunter-gatherers evolved to better understand their dogs, and the dogs with the most useful skills were bred and survived too.
Primitive humans benefited from dogs by giving alarm signals, tracking prey, emotional support, and transport. The dog may have even helped in the war against the neanderthals.
While dogs benefited by protection against predators, having a warm home, and eating food scraps. Evidence for this symbiosis is that dogs are well adapted to eating human food. Dogs digest starch 28x more efficiently than wolves do.
This symbiosis was really an amazing event! Could humans have survived the ice age without the help of dogs?
The benefits for both species over the last 29,000 years are remarkable. Dogs truly are man’s best friend.
5. Dog Breeds and Variation
During the ice age, humans bred dogs for functional purposes. But, today dogs are bred more for their looks.
Of all mammal species, dogs have the largest variation in both behavior and physical appearance.
The dog, or “canis lupus familiaris,” comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes. According to the American Kennel Club, there are 197 breeds of dogs.
The largest is the Great Dane, at up to 200 LB, and the smallest is the Chihuahua. The smallest dog today is named Milly. She is about 4 inches tall and weighs 1 lb.
Crossbred dogs live about 1 year longer than purebred dogs because they have a healthier, less inbred, genome!
4. Pure-Breed Health Issues
Artificial breeding has lead to some genetic flaws in popular purebred dogs.
Labrador retrievers are highly motivated by food and tend to be obese.
Pugs have deformed windpipes and excess tissue in their noses, which can lead to breathing and heart problems.
Almost 100% of german shepherds will develop arthritis in their hips because of the way their back was bred to be unnaturally sloped downward.
14% of dalmatians are born deaf. This is actually pretty interesting. To produce their spotted coat, dalmatians have a low melanocyte count. Melanin gives hair its dark color. So, the white hairs are pretty much born old. This also affects the hairs in the ear that is used to detect sound.
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3. Chaser the Border Collie
Border Collies are sheepherders. They are bred for their obedience, adaptive intelligence, and great work ethic.
Chaser took part in a memory study with her PhD in psychology owner, John Pilley. Chaser was able to memorize and retrieve 1,022 toys by name at age three.
Unlike the border collie, the Afgan hound is the most disobedient dog.
It was bread to track prey in the mountains independent of human guidance. It will follow its nose, not your instructions.
2. Dog-Human Communications
Not only do dogs have a great memory, but they can communicate with humans better than our closest relatives, the great apes.
Dogs communicate with humans using a combination of their body posture, tails, sounds, and ear movements. And visa versa, dogs can read human emotions by learning our facial expressions and voice tones.
Dogs have the intellect of two and a half-year-old human babies. They are more likely to engage with you when you talk to them like you would a baby as well.
A study from the University of New York showed that dogs find high pitches more interesting, and they have an easier time interpreting and finding meaning in shorter sentences. Are you a good girl? Oh yes, you are!
1. Reliance on Humans
About 83% of dogs worldwide are strays. Stray dogs can survive by scavenging food from human civilization, but they have lost their natural pack hunting instincts. Dogs today would struggle to survive if humans suddenly disappeared.
Wolves and African Wild-Dogs would eventually out-compete domestic dogs as they are still well adapted to live in the wild and are capable predators.
In a 2018 study, wolves were demonstrated to be more persistent in problem-solving than dogs were.
When facing an unsolvable problem, dogs have adapted to giving up and looking for help from humans!
So, please don’t forget man’s best friend has evolved to live alongside us and they need us more than we need them! I hope that you found this list (and video) of 10 cool dog facts informative and entertaining.
Next on Animal Science TV, we feature the sea horse! It is the slowest fish in the world!
Please watch more cool animal facts in this playlist, I also do 101 science education videos. I have a YouTube live news show with animal experts, where subscribers can ask questions. Thanks for watching Animal Science TV.
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