CONTENTS Your dog from head to tail All shapes and sizes Choosing your dog In the doghouse Getting to know you Doggy diets Day-to-day care Health and safety Dog behavior Communication Training Fun and games Dog quiz Quiz answers Learning more Glossary Index 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 31 32
YOUR DOG FROM HEAD TO TAIL Dogs evolved from an ancient breed of wolf and were probably the first animals to be tamed They started living with people more than 15,000 years ago Dogs gave humans early warnings of intruders and helped hunters by sniffing out and chasing prey Claws Strong blunt claws grip the ground as the dog runs They are also used for digging Tail The tail gives a good clue as to how a dog is feeling Legs Powerful leg muscles allow dogs to run long distances 4 Feet Dogs only have sweat glands in their paws so they have to cool down by panting
Eyes Dogs cannot see as many colors as we can but they have better vision in dim light Ears A dog can hear a sound four times farther away than a human can They can also hear high sounds that we cannot Brain The part of a dog's brain devoted to smelling is 40 times larger than that of a human's Nose Dogs have an incredible sense of smell There are up to 300 million scent receptors in a dog's nose compared to about 6 million in a human nose Dogs also have a special scent organ in the roof of their mouth that aids smelling Whiskers These long hairs around a dog's snout detect air movement and warn of obstacles in the dark Mouth Sharp teeth and strong jaws help with attacking prey and tearing at food DOG FACTS Bloodhounds can track a human scent over great distances In 1954 a bloodhound found a missing family by following a trail that was 12 days old Dogs may take 300 400 breaths per minute when they're panting to cool off
