1.)  Despite that us humans like being hugged and hugging our dogs, dogs really don't like hugs at all and interpret another animal's limbs around them as a sign of dominance.  (I'm still going to hug my dog anyway, though.)

2.)  Dogs use the top of their tongues to drink water.  Water sticks to the top of a dog's tongue and is pulled up into their mouth like a column.

3.)  Dogs were the first domesticated animal.  There are estimated to be about 1 billion domesticated dogs in the world.  (Remember to scoop that poop people because there's a ton of it out there!)

4.)  Obesity is the #1 health problem among dogs.  (So make sure you're monitoring your dog's diet and that they are getting exercise as much as possible!)

5.)  Ever wonder why sometimes when dogs hear sounds they jolt their head in the exact direction of where the sound came from?  Me too!  Well as it turns out, dogs have ear mobility, which allows them to rapidly pinpoint the exact location of a sound.  There are 18 or more muscles that can tilt, rotate, raise, or lower a dog's ear which is another reason they can identify a sound's location much faster than a human can, as well as hear sounds at four times the distance.

6.)  Ever caught your dog watching TV for a quick second?  Or looking at himself/herself in the mirror then look away?  Experimentation has proven that dogs show attraction to static images (silhouettes on screens, their own reflections, etc) but their interest declines drastically once they are unable to make a social connection to the image.

7.)  Dogs have good night vision, due in large part to the tapetum, a mirror-like structure which reflects light, giving the retina a second chance to register light that has entered the eye. This is also what makes dogs eyes glow at night.

8.)  Three dogs survived the sinking of the Titanic.  Two pomeranians and one pekingese.  (Some sources will say it was actually one newfoundland, one pomeranian, and one pekingese).  There were 10 dogs on board in total.  But of course, the surviving mutts were lap dogs from the first class cabins.  

9.)  Puppies have 28 teeth while adult dogs have 42 teeth.  Chomp.

10.)  The Labrador Retriever is the #1 favorite breed in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.

11.)  Dogs have amazing senses of smell because unlike human brains, which are dominated by the visual cortex, dog brains are dominated by the olfactory cortex.  The olfactory bulb of a dog is about 40 times the size of a humans, allowing for a sense of smell that is 100,000 to 1 million times greater than ours.  (Bonus fact: The wetness of a dog's nose is crucial for determining the direction of where a smell is coming from.)

12.)  The United States has the highest population of dogs for any one country.  Other countries with high canine "pupulations" are Brazil, China, Russia, Japan, Philippines, India, Argentina, France and Romania.

13.)  It is most likely, based on anthropological evidence, that dogs as a species are descendents of wolves.  By nature, they are predators and scavengers, and like many other predatory mammals, the dog has powerful muscles, fused wrist bones, a cardiovascular system that supports both sprinting and endurance, and teeth for catching and tearing.  (But at the same time, most of them are so sweet and cuddly!)

14.)  Dogs have been bread for a variety of different reasons, including hunting, guarding, detection, fishing, warfare, pulling, guiding and service, hearing, working, and competitions (breed shows, agility, racing), as well as a variety of other reasons - but their most valuable reason is COMPANIONSHIP.  And that's why dogs have become known as "man's best friend."  (Man means men and women, just so we're clear).

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Sources - Science Daily, Wikipedia, Google, Barkpost, Cesar,