Weird, Strange & Awesome Dog Facts

Posted by Priscilla

Our dogs are our best friends and it seems like we learn something new about them each day. Here’s a list of weird, strange and awesome dog facts. Read through to learn something you may not have known about your dog!

1. Boxers were named after their habit of playing. At the beginning of play with another dog, a Boxer will stand on his hind legs and ‘box’ at his opponent.

2. Portuguese Water Dogs have toes that are webbed with a soft membrane covered with hair. This is from years and years of being breed as hunting water retrieval dogs. This must mean Bo the First Dog is a fantastic swimmer!

3. The Norwegian Lundehund is the only dog with 6 toes (that help them climb). They also have been bred for extra joints in their neck and flexible shoulder joints so they can turn their head at a 180 degree angle.

4. In Italy, a doggy disco is held every year where owners can dance with their dogs. Do you and your pup ever boogie?

5. It is a myth that dogs are color blind. They can actually see in color, just not as vividly as humans. They are able to see yellow, blues and grays but not reds. Oddly enough, many dog toys out there are red.

6. Jack Russell Terriers were used in the blood sport of rat baiting. In rat baiting, as many as 100 rats were put into a ring, or a rat pit, and wagers were made on whose dog could kill the most rats within a minute.

7. The tip of a beagle’s tail must be white or he is not considered a true beagle. The white tip or flag has been selectively bred into the dog to make the beagle visible when his nose is to the ground. His tail sticks straight up when he is actively following a scent.

8. The record for the “fastest car window opened by a dog” in the Guinness Book of World Records is held by a Border Collie named Striker; his record time is 11.34 seconds