Do dogs possess a sixth sense? Many authors writing to a popular audience, among them trainers, veterinarians, and behavioral consultants, have suggested that dogs may use information derived from sources other than the normal senses. These beliefs have been reinforced in the publics mind by animal psychics claiming to communicate with dogs telepathically and to [...]

Much of a dog’s behavior is under the reflexive control of involuntary mechanisms. Neonatal puppies exhibit a great variety of reflexes that are predominately geared to maintaining contact with the mother to secure basic survival needs. These early neonatal reflexes gradually disappear and are replaced by more centrally controlled behaviors as puppies mature. Neonatal reflexive [...]

The dog’s body is equipped with a variety of receptors sensitive to stimuli impinging on the skin or arising from within the body itself. Specific receptors have evolved for the detection and measurement of pressure, vibration, heat and cold, chemicals, and various noxious stimuli. In addition, internal receptors sensitive to joint location, muscle stretch, and [...]

The ability to taste depends on the activation of gustatory receptor cells concentrated in the taste buds. The taste buds are found in various papillae (foliate, fungiform, and circumvallate to name the most common) that are distributed over the surface of the dog’s tongue. Taste buds contained in the fungi-form papillae are located on the [...]