Category: Tuesday Trivia

Tuesday Trivia

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 17 Comments
  • Sam is still recovering from the weekend’s hospital duties but  I found some fun and interesting factoids for the latest edition of Tuesday Trivia.
  • Male dogs urinate with one leg up to better mark their territory. The scent shares many aspects about the sprayer, i.e. size and health. The higher a dog pees up a proverbial tree, greater judgment is considered regarding the size of that dog. It should be noted however, that male dogs do not need to lift their leg in order to pee. Yeah, well tell that to Sam. He would no doubt beg to disagree.
  • A dog’s ear is full of sensory nerves that help preserve its hearing. You should never blow into a dog’s ear even gently as it can hurt. It’s not the actual act of wind but the frequency at which you blow. Kind of like running your fingernail down a chalkboard, only amplified hundreds of times.
  • Dogs evolved from a creature similar to a wolf, “Tomarctus” (meaning father of dogs) which roamed earth 15,000 years ago. They were domesticated by cavemen. Greeks used dogs for hunting and as guards. Romans traveled through Europe and brought their dogs with them and they bred with local dogs and gradually created many different breeds.
  • There are 701 types of purebred dogs divided into 6 groups: toys, hounds, herding, sporting, non-sporting, and working.
  • Most domesticated dogs are capable of reaching speeds of approximately 19.88 mph (32 km) when running full-out. Greyhounds can reach speeds up to nearly 43 1/2 mph (70 km).

 

Piazza Dante e Monumento - the monument to Fido
Piazza Dante e Monumento – the monument to Fido
  • The name “Fido” comes from Latin and means ‘fidelity.’
  • The U.S. has the highest dog population in the world.
  • Dogs are mentioned 14 times in the bible. And finally…
  • People who own pets live longer, have less stress, and fewer heart attacks (unless they’re trying to navigate a set of stairs where the dog thinks he must race down them at lightning speed). Till next time, do you know any tantalizing trivia?

Live, love, bark! <3

Tuesday Trivia ~ August 18, 2015

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 23 Comments

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Sam here and it’s Tuesday so you know what that means? It’s Tuesday Trivia! For this edition, we found some rather fascinating facts.

Personally, I think dogs are such interesting creatures. Did you know that apart from barking, growling and whining, dogs use their ears and facial expressions to communicate what they are feeling? I’m still wondering what Dr. Sarah thought of my jumping up on top of the table Monday evening at our re-certification exam. I don’t think she was quite expecting that at all! All I wanted was for her to give me some of the really yummy treats for poking and prodding me but like most humans, she didn’t seem to understand what I was trying to get across.

Did you know that puppies are born blind, without teeth and the ability to hear? Their eyes open only at around 10-14 days, and their hearing comes after that. Teeth start coming through at 6 weeks. That must be why those little razors try to make up for all that lost time by biting and chewing like 4 legged piranhas!

Speaking of puppies, during their first week, did you know they spend 90% of their time sleeping and just 10% eating?

In honor of mom’s work at the law firm, we thought we’d share a couple legal tidbits. I learned that it is illegal to own a dog as a pet In Iran. You have to be able to prove any dog is a guard or hunting dog. That seems dumb to this canine, what could possibly be behind that dumb law? Do you think I could pass as a guard or hunting dog? Yeah, me neither. I’ll remind mom that we must never go there (pfft…as if we would).

Another weird law relating to dogs is a little closer to home.  Back in Paulding, Ohio, police officers are allowed to bite a dog to get it to be quiet. This poodle thinks that’s just plain police brutality running amuck!

Now for a little more geography. Did you know French Poodles did not come from France? Poodles (like moi) are of German descent (Achtung!). We were bred to retrieve water fowl or so I’m told. I, on the other hand, was bred just to make people happy. They can get their own damn fowl as far as I’m concerned.

IMG_0966   The dachshund is one of the oldest dog breeds around dating back to ancient Egypt. The name comes from one of its earliest uses–hunting badgers. In German, Dachs means badger and Hund means hound.

Well that’s it for me this week. Do you know of any other interesting trivia about dogs?

Live, love, bark! <3

Tuesday Trivia ~ July 28, 2015

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 30 Comments

It’s Tuesday so that means…it’s Trivia Day. Check out the latest fascinating facts I recently discovered.

IMG_1522 Did you know that the wetness of a dog’s nose is essential for determining what direction a smell is coming from? I expect all of you with hunters will have known this, but this was completely unknown by me.

And why are dog’s noses wet? Dogs secret a thin layer of mucous that helps them absorb scents. Licking their nose help them sample the scent through their mouths.

When English poet Lord Byron was informed that his beloved dog, Boatswain would not be allowed to accompany him to Cambridge Trinity College, he retaliated by bringing a tame bear instead. There being no mention of bears in their statutes, the college authorities relented.  Byron also suggested that he would apply for a college fellowship for the bear.

Puppies have 28 teeth and normal adult dogs have 42. If that’s true, how come when a puppy play bites, you feel like you’ve just been bitten by the shark from Jaws?

While we’re on exploring the anatomy of dogs, did you know that their shoulder blades are unattached to the rest of the skeleton to allow for greater flexibility for running? Wild, huh?

Besides sweating through the pads of their paws, dogs pant to cool themselves off. A panting dog can take 300-400 breaths (compared with the regular 30-40) with little effort. When your dog’s feet smell like corn chips it’s because their feet are in constant contact with the ground picking up tons of microorganisms on the paws. When dogs cool off by sweating through the pads, the combination of moisture and bacteria releases that nutty, popcorn-like aroma. the term, Frito Feet is roughly akin to canine body order.

Plutodog

With the recent fly by of the little beloved planet, Pluto, I thought you’d appreciate knowing the very first animal launched into space was the Russian dog, Laika who orbited the earth in 1957 in the spacecraft Sputnik 2. Laika was a 3 year-old stray female from the streets of Moscow. Sadly, she did not survive the trip (and was not expected to survive by scientists on the ground), reportedly dying on the fourth day of the trip, though there were conflicting accounts as to the actual cause of death. Her remains disintegrated when the craft re-entered the atmosphere five months following the launch.

laika-sputnik-2

 

The shape of a dog’s face suggest how long it will live. Dogs with sharp-pointed faces (much like wolves) typically live longer. Dogs with flat faces, i.e. bulldogs, often have shorter lives.

And in the ‘hear’s looking at you category, dogs have three eyelids, an upper, a lower and a third lid, known as a nictitating membrane or haw that keeps the eye lubricated and protected.

Live, love, bark! <3

Tuesday Trivia ~ July 7, 2015

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 16 Comments

It’s Tuesday and that means it’s time for some interesting obscure trivia.

Did you know that spiked collars were invented in ancient Greece and were designed to protect dogs throats from wolf attacks?!

The phrase, “man’s best friend” is thought to have originated from a Missouri courtroom speech in 1870 involving a farmer who sued a neighbor who shot his dog.

And lastly, In our last trivia post, Sam shared about seeing eye dogs learning to pee and poop on commend. Well…there’s something about a seeing eye goose for a blind boxer! Buttons, a 4-year-old goose leads her buddy around by hanging on to him with her neck or honking at him as to where to go. Aren’t animals are simply amazing?!

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Live, love, bark! <3

Tuesday Trivia ~ June 23, 2015

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 23 Comments

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Sam here…after last week’s edition of trivia from mom about Paul McCartney and his pretty OES, Martha, I thought I could do this week’s installment of Tuesday Trivia. So here goes.

  • This one is especially near and dear to me and mom’s hearts. One of the Michael Vick dogs, Leo, went on to become a therapy dog who comforted children suffering from cancer. Although Leo passed away a few years ago, he was a big-hearted sweet dog who gave his all with love and compassion.  Big woof out for Leo.
  • Did you know that seeing eye dogs pee and poop on command so their owners can clean up after them? The command is usually “Get Busy” and male dogs are trained to not lift their legs! WTH is up with that? [Mom: That alone would disqualify Sam because we all know about his propensity for inane sniffing and circling.] “Mom, go away and stop crashing my pawty, you said I could do the post this week by myself!!” Sheesh.
  • In ancient China, the emperor’s last line of defense was a Pekingese dog hidden up his over-sized sleeves. As a big dog, any punchline about little dogs and that bit of info probably would be in bad taste so I’ll keep it to myself. I don’t want you guys to think I’m an elitist.
  • Did you know we dogs have 3 eyelids? An upper lid, a lower lid and the 3rd lid known as a nictitating membrane which helps to keep our eyes moist and protected.
  • Continuing on with the mucus membrane vein, dog’s noses secrete a tiny layer of mucus that help us absorb scents. Licking our nose allows us to sample the scent through our mouths.
  • Dalmatian puppies are born all white; their spots begin showing up as they grow older (take that Cruella DeVil, you mean old bat!).
  • And finally, this piece of trivia about a dog from Colorado named Naki’o who lost all his legs to frostbite when he was a mere puppy. With the help of a local company in the Denver area, OrthoPets fitted him with prosthetics, and Naki’o is walking, even running and jumping like any bouncy pupster.  He’s my kind of bionic dog except for that whole chasing balls thing. I. do. not. chase. balls. For anyone. Period.

Here’s to a safe and happy Tuesday. Mom thinks her office building will probably be the scene of a surprise evacuation drill to be called by the fire department some time later today. As the floor warden for her floor, she’s super excited about shepherding the lawyers down 30+ flights of stairs. See…things could always be worse-there’s nothing quite like trying to herd lawyers.  I think she said something like she’d rather set her hair on fire, but I could have misheard because I was howling so loud at the thought her trying to get all her bosses to go downstairs without whining complaining about the whole drill evacuation. When she gets home tonight, I think I’ll give her extra puppy kisses and love because she’s gonna need it. 😉

Live, love, bark! <3

Tuesday Trivia ~ 6/16/15

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 17 Comments

In honor of Sir Paul McCartney’s birthday later this week (Thursday, June 18 for those needing a reason to celebrate and eat cake-you’re welcome). I thought I’d pass along a bit of dog trivia.

Jane Asher, Martha and Sir Paul
Jane Asher, Martha and Paul

McCartney wrote the song “Martha My Dear” in October 1968 and releasing it in November on the double album The Beatles (known as The White Album) and inspired by his Old English Sheepdog. The song however was ostensibly about his longtime love interest, Jane Asher who broke off their engagement in a few months earlier. Asher inspired a number of songs including “We can Work it Out”, “Here, There and Everywhere”, “For No One”, and “I’m Looking Through You”.

Sir Paul also recorded a high pitched whistle along with some randomly spliced Beatles studio chatter in “A Day in the Life” audible only to dogs for Martha’s amusement. It appeared on the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album.

Hats off to a fellow dog-lover and soon to be a 73 year old rocker (yikes!). Happy Birthday, Sir Paul. Here’s our own OES lineup (when Sam joined the Ranch, he had a brother and sister OES).

The Gang - 2009
The Gang – 2009

Know of any other songs inspired by famous artists?

Live, love, bark! <3

Trivia Tuesday ~ June 9, 2015

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 29 Comments

You probably know this already but did you know dogs drink by forming the underside of their tongue into a little backward cup? And here I always thought Sam slopped water all over from the topside of his tongue but when I watched him closely, it’s front, back, under, and every which way in between. That dog is a mess and the proof is in the ginormous mat under his water bowl which is nearly always soggy.  Happy Tuesday. 🙂

dogs-drinking-water

 

Live, love, bark! <3