Birecall

Rising bark

It’s play time! If your dog starts with a low bark and it gets higher toward the end, he cannot contain his excitement and he wants to play a game with you!

Intense Eye Contact

Who doesn’t want to be the focus of a loved one’s attention? If you have a dog and he is making intense eye contact with you, he is focused on you and you alone. He is very alert to your expressions and what you want from him.

Awaiting your approval

If you find Fido looking at you before he is about to do something, this means he respects and desires your opinion. He understands you are in charge and does not like to upset you.

“Dog years” vary a lot based on breed

Nope, every dog year does not automatically equal seven human years, as many fun facts about dogs would have you believe. The fact—which does have some factual merit—came from observations that “average,” medium-sized dogs tended to live around one-seventh as long as their owners. However, dogs come in all shapes and sizes, and what’s “average” for a Great Dane is very different from what’s “average” for a Chihuahua. Paying attention to the “life stages” of dogs, and how they correspond to each breed, gives you a much better picture of how old your dog actually is than equating one year to seven years.

Sticking your hand out isn’t the best way to introduce yourself to a new dog

This is another of the fun facts about dogs that aren’t quite true. You probably grew up believing that the old “hold your hand out to an unfamiliar dog, let it smell you” advice was gospel. And it can work, but you have to be careful about how you do it. Just shoving your hand toward a strange dog’s face can scare or alienate her. You’re better off letting the dog approach you first and then offering your hand to the dog to smell, rather than assuming she wants to and waving your hand under her nose. And approach the dog from the side, rather than from straight on, if you must approach the dog yourself.

Dogs heat up more quickly than humans

Dogs’ normal body temperature is slightly higher than that of humans (it hovers at around 101.5° F), which means that hotter temperatures can affect them more. This is why you need to take care while walking your dog on a hot day. Also, don’t forget about the pavement if you’re taking your dog for a walk—the ground heats up fast in the sun and can be painful on dogs’ unguarded feet. Not to mention, dogs have that thick layer of fur. So a day that may not seem overwhelmingly hot to you can be a scorcher for your dog. That’s why you need to be especially careful of these warning signs of heatstroke in dogs.