News & Blogs for Dogs

Purpose Of Dog Whiskers 

 
Have you ever gazed over at your canine companion’s whiskers wondering “what are those long toe ticklers really for?” Fun fact, those strange looking coarse hairs around your dog’s muzzle, chin and eyes are actually packed with nerves. These particular hairs are very different than the rest of the fur on your dog's body. They play an important role in sending sensory messages to your dog's brain, much like the way our sense of smell, touch, sight, sound and taste send feedback to our human brains.

A dog’s whiskers aid him or her in determining the shape, size and speed of nearby objects, helping your dog with overall spatial awareness. They are also able to feel vibrations and subtle changes in the air through the follicles at the base of the hairs. This can be especially helpful in sensing danger approaching, providing an extra keen awareness of the surrounding environment. This is part of why dogs seem to have excellent medical intuition.

It is important that we understand the role whiskers have in our dogs lives, since some people find it tempting to trim whiskers for cosmetic reasons, but please don't. It will cause severe confusion for our pups, like losing one of our own five senses would.

Relaxed 

1. Ears up 
2. Head high 
3. Mouth open
4. Loose stance 
5. Tail down and relaxed

Playful and Excited 

1. Pupils dilated
2. Ears up
3. Mouth open (tongue may be out)
4. Front end lowered (like a bow)
5. Tail up 
6. Looks like they are ready to run

Alert 

1. Eyes wide 
2. Ears forward
3. Smooth nose 
4. Tail high
5. Body tense
6. Mouth closed
7. Slight forward lean

Dominant  Aggressive    

1. Ears forward
2. Nose wrinkled
3. Lips curled
4. Teeth visible 
5. Mouth open and C-shaped
6. Stiff stance
7. Hackles raised
8. Tail raised

Fearful Aggressive  

1. Ears back 
2. Head can be raised or slightly raised
3. Pupils dilated
4. Nose wrinkled
5. Lips curled 
6. Hackles raised
7. Body lowered
8. Tail tucked (or raised if just being aggressive)

Anxious   

1. Yawning 
2.  Lip licking 
3. Brief body freezing
4. Head turned 
5. Shaking
6. Drooling
7. Lack of focus
8. Sweaty paws 

Frightened     

1. Eye contact brief
2. Ears back 
3. Mouth closed 
4. Body lowered and crouched
5. Tail down

Submissive 

1. Eyes partially closed
2. Head turned to avoid eye contact
3. Ears flat and back
4. Rolls onto back
5. Tail tucked 
6. May pee 
7. Corners of mouth back

Before you approach any strange dog, look for signs of relaxed or playful body language and always ask the owner if it is ok to approach.

Dogs VS Human Aging 

There are many myths that float around about dogs, one of the biggest being about the way dog's age in comparison to humans. It has been noted that for every year a dog is alive, it equivalents to 7 human years. This is inaccurate! It is true that dogs age much faster than humans, but the rate in which they age is dependant on their size. Small dogs (<20 pounds) age the slowest and large dogs (>90 pounds) age the quickest. 

Every dog is considered a senior by the age of 7-8 years old, but the difference in human years between a small and large or giant breed is significant. Therefore a giant breeds life-span is said to be much shorter than one of a small breed. 
Below you can see the comparison between small, medium, large and giant breeds aging vs humans. 

Chocolate And Dogs

MONDAY CAN BE RUFF!! WE HOPE YOUR MONDAY STARTS OFF BETTER THAN THIS LADS.....

Do Dog’s Sweat?