 Top 5 Myths about DogsFriday, 22 February 2013 | Admin
FIVE COMMON DOG MYTHS | 1. A dry nose means a poorly dog This myth started when Canine Distemper was a common disease. A symptom of distemper is a thickening of the pads and nose resulting in them becoming dry and hard. Therefore a cold wet nose was a good sign that the dog didn't have distemper. In fact, a dog's nose is often dry and/or warm when he has just woken up and isn't necessarily a barometer of health. Of course a constantly dry nose or any discharge should be referred to a vet immediately |  | 2. Dogs can only see in Black and White Before scientists fully understood the canine eye, it was once believed that dogs can only see in monochrome. Some people still think this. In fact, dogs can see in colour, seeing similar shades and colours to those in red-green colourblindness in humans as shown below | 3. Dogs eat grass to make themselves vomit Actually, it is the other way round. Dogs eat grass because they generally like it, and too much of it, is likely to cause a minor irritation and make the dog vomit. Eating grass is relatively harmless unless your dog eats too much, too regularly causing chronic vomiting. Also avoid chemically treated grass |  | 4. A wagging tail means a happy dog  Dogs wag their tails for lots of reasons for example when they are happy and excited but they can also wag their tail when they are nervous, anxious and as a potential precursor to aggression. A slight wag is generally seen during greetings is a quick "hello" or "I'm here". A broad wag is generally friendly and "I'm not a threat to you" or "I'm pleased about this". A slow wag at half mast is generally less social. Generally a slow wag in neither the dominant position (high) or submissive position (low) are signs of insecurity. A fast, almost vibrating wag generally means the the dog is about to something, usually run or fight. A fast, vibrating tail held high is most likely an active threat. The direction in which your dog wags it's tail also indicates their feelings about something. A wag to the right side of their rear indicates your dog is feeling generally positive, whilst wagging mostly to the left suggests negative feelings | 5. A dog ages 7 years for each human year This myth probably derives from when human life expectancy was much shorter. A 15 year old dog, which is quite common, is generally in better shape than a 105 year old human. Dogs do however age much faster than humans, for example a 1 year old dog is like the human teenager. Smaller dog breeds are known to live 15-20 years whilst larger breeds and especially the giant breeds can generally expect 7-10 years. |  | | 
