Animal Facts
Discover interesting and fun facts about cats, dogs, and other animals. Learn fascinating information about our furry friends.
Cat Facts
Get Random FactThe life expectancy of cats has nearly doubled over the last fifty years.
Jaguars are the only big cats that don't roar.
Cats have 30 teeth (12 incisors, 10 premolars, 4 canines, and 4 molars), while dogs have 42. Kittens have baby teeth, which are replaced by permanent teeth around the age of 7 months.
Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds; dogs only have about ten.
Cats must have fat in their diet because they can't produce it on their own.
Ancient Egyptians shaved off their eyebrows to mourn the deaths of their cats.
When a cat drinks, its tongue - which has tiny barbs on it - scoops the liquid up backwards.
Neutering a male cat will, in almost all cases, stop him from spraying (territorial marking), fighting with other males (at least over females), as well as lengthen his life and improve its quality.
All cats need taurine in their diet to avoid blindness. Cats must also have fat in their diet as they are unable to produce it on their own.
"Evaluation and Parameterization of Stability and Safety Performance Characteristics of Two and Three Wheeled Vehicular Toys for Riding." Title of a $230,000 research project proposed by the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, to study the various ways children fall off bicycles.
Cats prefer to remain non-confrontational. They will not fight to show dominance, but rather to stake their territory. Cats will actually go to extremes to avoid one another in order to prevent a possible confrontation.
Dogs and cats consume over $11 billion worth of pet food a year
When a domestic cat goes after mice, about 1 pounce in 3 results in a catch.
Smuggling a cat out of ancient Egypt was punishable by death. Phoenician traders eventually succeeded in smuggling felines, which they sold to rich people in Athens and other important cities.
Cats have been domesticated for half as long as dogs have been.
Dog Facts
Get Random FactThe ancient Chinese carried Pekingese puppies in the sleeves of their robes.
When "Bobbie," a Collie/Shepherd mix, was accidentally abandoned on a family vacation, he traveled 2,551 miles over six months to return to his home.
Fifteen people die in the U.S. every year from dog bites.
In Old England, the word "hound" was used to refer to all types of dogs.
Pitter patter. A large breed dog’s resting heart beats between 60 and 100 times per minute, and a small dog breed’s heart beats between 100-140. Comparatively, a resting human heart beats 60-100 times per minute.
A dog's nose is so sensitive that they can detect minute changes in the earth's magnetic field.
George Washington had 36 dogs–all Foxhounds–with one named Sweetlips.
“Lassie” was played by a group of male dogs; the main one was named Pal.
Dogs are naturally submissive to any creature with higher pack status, human or canine.
Some studies believe that dogs started to be domesticated 33,000 years ago.
Dogs can be trained to detect cancer and other diseases in humans.
Dogs can count up to five and can perform simple mathematical calculations.
'Frito Feet' is the name of the phenomenon in which the bacteria on a dog's paws cause them to smell like corn chips. Because a pup's feet are in constant contact with the ground, they pick up tons of microorganisms in their paws. When dogs cool off by sweating through the pads of their feet, the combo of moisture and bacteria releaces a nutty, popcorn-like aroma. Basically it's dog B.O.
A dog’s powerful sense of smell is frequently called upon to detect anything from mines and explosives to termites and bed bugs.
Male dogs will raise their legs while urinating to aim higher on a tree or lamppost because they want to leave a message that they are tall and intimidating. Some wild dogs in Africa try to run up tree trunks while they are urinating to appear to be very large.
General Animal Facts
Get Random FactSome lions mate over 50 times a day.
A giraffe can clean its ears with its 21-inch tongue!
Ninety percent of all species that have become extinct have been birds.
Most lipstick contains fish scales.
A blue whales heart only beats nine times per minute.
The muzzle of a lion is like a fingerprint - no two lions have the same pattern of whiskers.
You share your birthday with at least 9 million other people in the world.
Over 1000 birds a year die from smashing into windows!
Sailfish can leap out of the water and into the air at a speed of 50 miles (81 km) per hour.
Humans and dolphins are the only species that have sex for pleasure.
In the 17th century, the value of pi was known to 35 decimal places. Today, to 1.2411 trillion.
Lightning strikes the earth about 8 million times a day.
Elephants are the only mammals that cannot jump.
All polar bears are left-handed.
A shark can detect one part of blood in 100 million parts of water.