A greyhound can run as fast as 45 miles an hour

Eighty percent of dog owners buy their dog a present for holidays and birthdays More than half of them sign letters and cards from themselves and their pets

All dogs can be traced back 40 million years ago to a weasel-like animal called the Miacis which dwelled in trees and dens. The Miacis later evolved into the Tomarctus,a direct forbearer of the genus Canis, which includes the wolf and jackal as well as the dog

The origin of amputating a dog’s tail may go back to the Roman writer Lucius Columella’s (A.D. 4-70) assertion that tail docking prevented rabies

A dog can hear sounds 250 yards away that most people cannot hear beyond 25 yards. The human ear can detect sound waves vibrating at frequencies up to 20,000 times a second. But dogs can hear sound waves that vibrate at frequencies of more than 30,000 times a second

Laika became the world’s first space traveler. Russian scientists sent the small animal aloft in an artificial earth satellite in 1957

To keep your dog off the couch, nail empty tuna cans to a board and put it there before leaving. Your dog will find it uncomfortable, and it’s easy to store under the couch

Many foot disorders in dogs are related to long toenails. Check your dog’s nails once a month and trim when necessary, avoiding the vein

Never punish a puppy for chewing….. just be sure to provide the appropriate objects. Puppies need to chew to stimulate the loss of their baby teeth and to help place their permanent teeth

Dogs are able to see much better in dim light than humans are. This is due to the tapetum lucidum, a light-reflecting layer behind the retina. Because it functions like a mirror, it also accounts for the strange shine or glow in a dog’s eyes at night

Dogs can very easily regurgitate. In fact, after eating wolves can travel significant distances back to their dens and regurgitate the food at will to feed their pups

Dogs can see color but it is not as vivid a color scheme as we see. It is much like our vision at twilight

A dog’s nose is not just used for smelling, but also to keep him cool. That’s why a dog pants. The longer the dog’s nose, the better his cooling system works

When a puppy is removed from its mother, don’t make it spend the first night alone. Its loss of family is enough for one night

Give your small or short-haired dog a sweater for winter walk

Dogs and cats turn in circles before lying down because in the wild this instinctive action turns long grass into a bed.

A puppy’s eyes do not open until it is 10 to 15 days old. Its vision is usually not complete until it is about four weeks old.

The time to start teaching your dog to sit and stay is the day you bring her home.

Puppies should remain with their mother until they are at least eight weeks old. During this time, she will teach them not to bite, and how to get along with other dogs.

The most confident puppy in a litter often makes the worst pet because he sees himself as the pack leader.

A dog can suffer from a poor self-image, just like humans. Bolster self-esteem with praise, affection and rewards.

Ignore your new puppy’s whining when you first isolate it for sleeping. If you don’t you will only encourage it to whine more

When a small dog is aggressive toward people, don’t pick him up. This only reinforces the behavior since he will see it as a reward.

Never assume that a barking dog won’t bite, unless you’re absolutely certain the dog believes it too.

What countries have the least amount of pet dogs? Germany and Switzerland only have one dog for every ten families. They need more dogs

Smartest dogs: 1) border collie; 2) poodle; 3) golden retriever

Dumbest dog: afghan

The common belief that dogs are color blind is false. Dogs can see color but it is not as vivid a color scheme as we see. It is much like our vision at twilight

Dogs and humans are the only animals with prostates

Dogs chew up your underwear because it smells like you. One in every three US families owns one or more dogs.

The tallest dogs are the Great Dane and the Irish Wolfhound.

The oldest reliable age recorded for a dog is 29 years, 5 months for a Queensland ‘heeler’ called Bluey in Victoria, Australia. The average dog lives to around 15 years of age.

Brush your dog 3 times a week in the spring, and you’ll have a summer free from shedding.

When teaching a puppy to come, begin by getting down to his level so he will not be encouraged to jump up on you.

Don’t attempt to teach your dog anything else until he will sit and stay on command for at least one minute.

If your dog reacts anti-socially toward visitors, put her in another room until she calms down. When you let her out, ignore her. This forces your dog to go to the visitors for social activity.

The burying of bones is part of a dog’s instinctive feeding ritual; shaking things viciously is part of the hunting ritual.

Alexander the Great is said to have founded and named a city Peritas, in memory of his dog

Dalmatians are completely white at birth

The name of the dog on the Cracker Jacks box is Bingo. The Taco Bell Chihuahua is a rescued dog named Gidget

Plato once said that “a dog has the soul of a philosopher

Weird dog laws include allowing police offers in Palding, Ohio, to bite a dog to quiet it. In Ventura County, California, cats and dogs are not allowed to have sex without a permi

The phrase “raining cats and dogs” originated in seventeenth-century England. During heavy rainstorms, many homeless animals would drown and float down the streets, giving the appearance that it had actually rained cats and dogs

Apple and pear seeds contain arsenic, which may be deadly to dogs

Small quantities of grapes and raisins can cause renal failure in dogs. Chocolate, macadamia nuts, cooked onions, or anything with caffeine can also be harmful

Different smells in the a dog’s urine can tell other dogs whether the dog leaving the message is female or male, old or young, sick or healthy, happy or angry

Dogs have a wet nose to collect more of the tiny droplets of smelling chemicals in the air

Most experts believe humans domesticated dogs before donkeys, horses, sheep, goats, cattle, cats, or chickens

The most popular dog breed in Canada, U.S., and Great Britain is the Labrador retriever

There are an estimated 400 million dogs in the world

A dog can locate the source of a sound in 1/600 of a second and can hear sounds four times farther away than a human can

A dog most likely interprets a smiling person as baring their teeth, which is an act of aggression.