Without a home but not without hope, animals in shelters have to fight uphill battles based on all the myths about their situations. We've come up with 10 common misconceptions about these pups and broken it down into the honest truth — get started and see for yourself in honor of Adopt a Shelter Dog month!
Admittedly, I sometimes use editing software to touch up North's pupils but, when a pal asked about the phenomenon of red, yellow, blue, or green eyes in animal photos, I found myself rambling on like a quasiscientist. Just call me Dr. PetSugar . . .
When taking a picture, eye discoloration often occurs if a flash goes off with someone (or something) looking straight at the camera. I know I'm not the only one bending down to capture my pooch's cute antics and look at these baby blues! North's pupils aren't really that color, but learn why they look that way and read more
Am I the only pet owner who's tried to shove a bowl of water under my pup's dangling tongue . . . only to have him turn his nose up at it? I didn't always realize that just because his tongue was out, didn't mean he wanted a drink. Dogs hang their tongues out when they are hot (sometimes they're also thirsty), but it's actually a way to cool themselves off. 
Typically, pups pant and breathe in air through their noses and release the air through their mouth – when the mouth's open, the saliva can evaporate, producing a cooling effect! So, if your choosy pooch doesn't choose water when he's outside like Samson here, just know his body's working to further cool down his blood flow just by that cute technique.
If you recall the film featuring this big-eared pachyderm and his animated mouse pal, you'll remember he wasn't too keen about meeting this rodent. Now, I'm not sure where the idea that elephants are scared of mice originated from, but I'd like to take the time to assure you, it's not entirely true!
Think about it. Picture the size of an elephant. Then, picture the size of a mouse. Picture the size of the elephant's lil' eyes checking out that lil' guy. Although pachyderms can smell and hear things that are far away, their eyesight is poor and their eyes teensy in relation to their enormous heads (that can just turn slightly from side to side). Furthermore, there's no scientific evidence that elephants are fearful of many animals in the wild, and it's been shown that the two species coexist peacefully in captivity. Mice can make their homes in the elephants' hay and straw . . . and probably don't even get a second glance way down there from the big ones.
It's official — this 5-week-old polar bear cub has been named Flocke by zookeepers in Nuremberg today. They'd already affectionately dubbed the fuzzy one with that name meaning "flake" and ended up sticking to it. This baby was rescued after mother bear, Vera, appeared to be increasingly aggressive towards the cub, picking her up and dropping her . . . and just days after another new zoo mother bear, Vilma, ate her two babies. Despite Flocke's young age, her international popularity may soon rival Knut, the hand-raised Berlin Zoo "orphan" that turned one back in December. I can't wait to see more pictures and videos of both cubs growing up . . . and wonder if there will one day be a love connection between the two?!
I don't know about you, but I definitely give consideration to what color toy, harness, and bed I choose for my pet. Now, it's not because I truly believe he prefers a turquoise harness, indigo ball, or lime-green pinstripes on his chocolate-brown bed, I would just rather the stuff match my apartment (neurotic, I know). I can't tell what colors North's eyes see, but there's much research (and many misconceptions) about which colors, if any, are visible to doggies. Veterinary ophthalmologists have determined that dogs are similar to people with red/green color blindness — pups can see bluish and greenish shades but not many ones closer to red.
To learn about conclusions from experiments performed by University of Wisconsin researchers, read more
