5 Unbelievable Dog Facts You Never Knew
Dogs are amazing creatures and as "humans's best friend" we think we know them pretty well. But there are some things about our furry friends that are not commonly known. Here are 5 unbelievable facts you never knew about dogs.
1. Dogs Are Not Color Blind
Well, not completely. It's true they may not see the same vibrant colorful world that most humans are lucky enough to experience, but that does not mean their lives are completely void of color. Our human eyes can see all the colors of the rainbow but we possess three types of cones alowing us to see any combination of red, blue or yellow. A dog has two types of cones thus allowing any variation of only blue and yellow. They still have color in their world just not the same as we see it.
2. Dogs Do Not Sweat From Their Skin
While it's very normal to see a dog panting to keep cool, their sweat glands aren't in a place you might expect. We all know about their wet noses and that is actually them sweating, but it's the pads on their feet that are the main area in which their sweat glands reside. They dont sweat from the skin as we do and it's important to know never to shave a dogs fur exposing their skin, thinking it would keep them cool. Their fur actually protects them from the sun and helps prevent burns.
3. Puppies Are Born Both Deaf And Blind
Newborn puppies start off their lives with only their outstanding sense of smell to navigate their world. For around the first two weeks of a dogs life their eyelids are closed completely and their hearing takes even longer, not developing until around three weeks old. Once a dogs hearing is developed it is far superior to a humans. Humans can hear in the range of between 20 and 20,000 hertz and dogs hear in the 40 to 60,000 hertz range.
4. The Beatles Made A Song For Dogs
As we have mentioned a dogs hearing is very different than a humans and they can hear frequencies that we cannot, especially in the higher range. The final track on The Beatles ‘Sgt Pepper’ (A Day In The Life). The song contains the inclusion of a dog whistle throughout the song. With the sound being into a high 15 kilohertz only your dog will know if the legend of this very cool fact is true. Try it for yourself!
5. Dogs Have Three Eyelids
Dogs, like birds reptiles and a few mammals actually possess three eyelids. Nature likes a level playing field and the extra eyelid is an evolutionary feature that helps protect an animal's eye from dirt and injury when dealing with the brutality animals would likely face in the wild. Dogs still retain the feature that their wild wolf cousins still need. Though not usually visible you may notice it on your dog if you are looking for it.