If lockdown
has proved anything, it’s that people will band together to have some fun, and
old-school diversions are more popular than ever. One such activity that’s seen
a resurgence is the general knowledge quiz. Today, we’re serving up 8
dog-related facts that would work well in any quiz.





There’s
a Beatles song with a sound in it that only dogs can hear





As The
Beatles matured as band, they moved further away from their Pop roots and became
more interested in experimental rock. Look no further than the 1967 track A
Day in the Life,
which features several seconds of sound at frequency only dogs
and cats can hear. The secret was let out of the bag by Paul McCartney, but the
idea was reputedly Lennon’s.





There’s
a reason dogs enjoy rolling around in dirt





Did you
know that dogs roll around in the dirty stuff to mask their own smell? This is
a trait they’ve inherited from their hunting ancestors; a time when it was
useful to mask one’s odor in the quest for prey.





Greyhounds
are actually faster than cheetahs – over a long enough distance





Cheetahs
get a lot of praise for their top speed of 60mph, but they can only keep that pace
up for 200 or 300 yards. By contrast, a Greyhound can do 35mph for an
incredible 7 miles. The winner in an endurance race is clear.





Nearly
half of Dalmatians are actually deaf in one ear





The extreme
piebald gene, which gives Dalmatians the distinctive white coat and striking blue
eyes, is also responsible for triggering deafness in one ear. A purported 30%
of the breed have this condition, and as many as 5% are deaf in both ears. Not
all Dalmatians sport blue eyes, but the ones that do are thought to be more
likely to be deaf.





Not all
dogs are capable of barking…





…In fact,
there’s one breed that can’t bark at all: the Basenji, which herald from
Central Africa, yodels instead.





Three
dogs made it off the Titanic alive





Two
Pomeranians and a Pekingese escaped the Titanic in the arms of their owners, or
in the arms of rescue teams.





Walking
in circles is an inherited trait





Ever
noticed your dog walking around its sleeping area, seemingly at random? There’s
actually a very real reason for this, and it goes back thousands of years, to a
time when dogs would flatten grass in the wild, turning it into a makeshift bed
in the process.





While dogs are perfectly happy in water, they don’t like rain





Why? The sound hurts their sensitive ears.





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