Dog science is evolving, and more and more researchers are investing time and resources in understanding the inner mechanisms that make our best friends so close to humans. Now, more than ever, we understand the behavior of puppies - from the biological aspect to the psychological one. Want to know what science thinks about your dog? In this article, we have collected the most interesting facts.
Why do dogs sleep so much?
You've probably wondered why your pet is constantly
sleeping, sometimes even all day. The amount of time a dog spends sleeping
depends on many factors, including age, size, breed, health status, and level
of physical activity. Animals that have nothing to do during the day often
sleep to drive away boredom, and simply because it is enjoyable. Dogs
require significantly more sleep than humans, It turns out that pets need
to sleep longer to compensate for the imbalance.
What do dogs want to say when they bark?
Why is your dog barking? Although barking can have a
variety of causes, biologists have previously believed that barking is
independent of the "message" transmitted to the animal. Further
research into the dog's biology found that the elasticity of its vocal cords
allowed it to subtly alter its barking sounds, giving them different meanings,
The spectrograms of dog barks show differences in duration,
height, and amplitude, the values of which vary depending on the
situation. The same goes for growling. While it is not yet clear to
researchers what the different types of barking and growling mean, experiments
have shown that animals respond differently to sounds made by other dogs
depending on the situation. For example, scientists have recorded a dog
growling while eating and growling at a stranger. When a dog being offered
a treat was turned on to record a growl while eating, it showed greater
insecurity than when it was turned on to record a growl at a
stranger. Other experiments have shown that dogs and humans are more
likely to respond to “stranger barking” than other types of barking. To
decipher every kind of barking and growling,
What speed can a dog develop?
How fast does the dog run? In fact, this is individual
for each pet. Running speed largely depends on the size, shape of the body
and length of the legs, as well as on the age, health and physical condition of
the animal. The average speed that the Greyhound develops is an average of
72 km / h, and this is the fastest breed in the world, some of which reach
speeds of up to 80.5 km / h, While Greyhounds with streamlined bodies and
other breeds such as Whippets and Afghan Hounds seem to be specially designed
to develop high speeds, all dogs, without exception, are able to give their
bodies a more streamlined shape, improving aerodynamics while running, or
flattening the ears to reduce wind resistance, or tilting them back to keep out
of the way.
The way a running dog moves the paws is also
changing. While walking, the dog simultaneously moves its right and left
paws, and while running, it makes large horizontal jumps on the front and hind
legs folded together, which allows you to develop high speed.
How dog jump high?
For some dogs, climbing onto the sofa is no problem, others
need a ladder to take a nap next to you in your favorite chair, and for others,
even a fence around the house is not a big obstacle, because they jump
beautifully. Like the ability to run, the ability to jump and jump height
depends on the size, strength, age, health, and physical condition of the
animal. Cuteness reports that the maximum height to which a dog can jump
is 1.8 m, but the most interesting thing is that small breeds can jump to a
height several times their own height. Another indicator of canine jumping
ability is the distance the dog can jump in length. For example, to participate
in diving competitions, dogs are trained to jump into it from a running start,
and some four-legged participants can jump as much as 9 meters, according to
The Labrador Site.
Do dogs have good eyesight?
Despite the problems with distinguishing colors, the dog's
eye sees things that are invisible to you and me. The authors of
the Bark Post website list objects that animals can see, but
people cannot see: for example, the earth's magnetic field and pictures that we
see only in ultraviolet light. But this does not mean that a dog's
eyesight is better than that of a person. According to the specialists of
Veterinary Ophthalmology Clinics Veterinary Vision, the peripheral vision
of the dog is better due to the eyes located on the sides of the head, but visual
acuity (the ability to focus on an object) is only 20-40% of human visual
acuity. This means that the dog sees an object that a person with 100%
vision can distinguish at a distance of 27 meters, only at a distance of 6
meters. For this reason, our pets often rely on other senses to navigate
the world around them.
Do dogs have good hearing?
What is your dog's hearing? Dogs' keen hearing is not
fiction at all, it is a unique biological benefit that has helped them for
thousands of years. According to Petful, a dog can hear sound at a
distance four times the distance at which a human can hear it. Dogs have
the ability to use each ear individually and change the direction in which they
listen, which allows them to focus on a specific sound. This is possible
thanks to 18 muscles responsible for the movement of the ear - three times more
than in humans. Dogs are also able to hear different frequencies, which is
why the dog whistle works so hard on them even when we can't hear
anything. And finally, dogs, like humans, have the ability to selectively
hear, so when you call a pet walking around the house, and it seems that he is
ignoring you, then it probably is.
When you get home at the end of the day, even after an hour or
two, chances are your dog will be in seventh heaven. Is always! Is
always! Is always! The dog's violent reaction to the return of the
owner is one of the many reasons why we love them so much. But why are
they so happy about the arrival of the owners?
This reaction is determined by three main factors, when
studying scans of the brains of dogs that were offered different smells,
researchers studying the behavior of dogs noticed that the smell of a familiar
person activates the pleasure center in their brains in a way that none of the
proposed smells does. This suggested that pets not only distinguish
between humans and other dogs but also genuinely love to spend time with their
owners.
Another study conducted a cognitive experiment designed to
observe children who saw their mothers after their absence to analyze how dogs
respond to meeting owners after separation. This study found that the
reactions of children and dogs are very similar. We must not forget that
dogs are social animals that do not like to be alone. For them, our return
is a salvation from loneliness and boredom. And if you add up all the
factors, it becomes quite clear why dogs are so happy when they see their
beloved owners.
Why are there so many different breeds of dogs?
The dog is one of the most diverse animal species on the
planet. English Kennel Club allocates 218 different breeds of dogs, not
counting regional varieties, hybrid designs, mixed breeds, and happy mongrels of
unknown species.
With all the variety of colors, shapes, sizes, and temperaments,
according to scientists, dogs began to separate from wolves at the genetic
level about 27,000 years ago. We should thank those ancient
hunter-gatherers who first got themselves pets for the variety of dog
breeds. No one knows exactly when the breeding of animals with similar
characteristics began in order to obtain certain qualities, but in doing so,
humans inadvertently interfered with gene selection, connecting dominant genes
and controlling their expression in generations of dogs.
While this practice continued throughout the entire period of
animal domestication, selective breeding of dogs began actively in the 19th
century: people began to create various breeds for aesthetic reasons and for
the sake of novelty, and not in order to obtain characteristics most suitable
for hunting or grazing. livestock. As this continues to this day, the
number of breeds and their diversity continue to grow.
There is no doubt that dogs are special animals, as
evidenced by our friendship with them. As dog science uncovers more and
more scientific facts, we learn more and more about our shaggy
friends. But in some ways we can do without science: we do not need to
explain why our dogs are wonderful - all without exception.
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