Jan Jaeger
Pet Tracks
The dog body quiz

I’m a sucker for quizzes. I was researching a topic I thought would be my subject for this week on the Animal Planet Web site, animal.discovery.com, when I got sidetracked by Quiz Central on their Fun & Games list.

Actually, I moved to this mental challenge in hopes of restoring my thoroughly crushed ego. At their Shapeshifter site, it took me an embarrassing five minutes to move seven geometric shapes onto a goose outline. Not one of my better performances.

However, I did much better with their Body Challenge questions, so I’ll share some of those here for you to try. Be forewarned, some of these questions are a bit tricky.

1. The mechanism by which a dog keeps cool is:

(a) Sweat glands

(b) Panting

(c) Secretion of fluids in the

nasal glands

(d) Taking a shower

2. A puppy begins to be able to see and hear at the age of:

(a) 2-3 days

(b) 1 week

(c) 2-3 weeks

(d) 1 month

3. To show aggression, a dog will frequently:

(a) Bark wildly

(b) Howl

(c) Stare

(d) Wag its tail

4. Which of the following may be toxic to your dog:

(a) Algae

(b) Onions

(c) Poinsettia

(d) All of the above

5. How often should you bathe a dog:

(a) Once a week

(b) Every 2 weeks

(c) Every 3 weeks

(d) No more than once a month

6. How often should a dog have its teeth brushed:

(a) Once a month

(b) Once a year

(c) Daily

(d) Every 6 months

7. The most popular dog is:

(a) Collie

(b) Retriever

(c) Dalmation

(d) Mixed breed

8. And, finally for a real brain teaser, what is the skull type of most sight hounds:

(a) Dolichocephalic

(b) Mesocephalic

(c) Craniumphalic

(d) Brachycephalic

Jan Jaeger is owner of Geronimo’s, Ltd., Nantucket’s pet supply and gift shop and is a member of DWAA and CWA (Dog and Cat Writer’s Associations of America). Her pets at home are Junior, a Chesapeake Bay Retriever and three cats. At the shop are the cats Messrs, Fish and Chips, Flower bunny, Millie the guinea pig and three budgies. Send e-mail to jan@geronimos.com.

ANSWERS

1. Although dogs do pant to keep cool, the tongue is not where the cooling takes place; it is in the nasal passages instead. Nasal glands secrete fluid, and it is the evaporation within a dog’s nasal chambers that creates a cooling effect.

2. Born blind and deaf, a two-day-old puppy is still capable of feeling, smelling and tasting. By 2-3 weeks of age, it will start seeing and hearing while its other senses continue to develop. By the end of the first month, it will begin to growl, howl and bark.

3. To show dominance and aggression, a dog will frequently stare at the subject of its aggression. Other signs include raised hackles, lips pulled back into a snarl and a tail held above and away from the body.

4. It can be surprising what commonly accessible substances can be a danger to your dog. Reaction to ingesting a toxic plant can be fairly mild, or more serious with dehydration, diarrhea or even death. If your pet has eaten some dangerous greenery, contact your vet immediately.

5. You don’t need to bathe your dog more than once every month or two, depending on the coat type. Bathing too often can lead to dry, brittle coat and scaly, flaky skin. Owners may prefer to bathe more often if their dog is in close personal contact, not prone to dry skin or particularly attracted to mud.

6. Of course, daily is ideal, but probably not practical. A couple of times a week is more realistic for most people, with a professional cleaning when recommended by your vet.

7. The world’s most popular breed of dog is no breed at all. In a true mixed breed, the heritage is almost impossible to guess, although it’s fun to try.

8. OK now. If you got this one right, you have to be a really good guesser. In sight hounds, such as Greyhounds and Salukis, the skull shape features a long and relatively narrow snout and is referred to as dolichocephalic. Craniumphalic skull is a ringer.