Dogs Quiz
Toto, Hachiko, Chihuahuas and Great Danes: 15 questions on breeds, biology and history's most famous dogs.
Domestic dogs are descended from which wild animal?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Grey wolf
Genetic studies show that all domestic dogs descend from an ancient population of grey wolves, with domestication beginning at least 15,000 years ago, long before any plant or other animal was farmed.
The dingo is itself a feral descendant of early domestic dogs that reached Australia with humans several thousand years ago.
Which breed is famous for its white coat covered in black spots and its long association with fire stations?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Dalmatian
Dalmatians were bred as carriage dogs that ran alongside horse drawn vehicles, so fire brigades kept them to clear the way and calm the horses pulling steam pumpers.
Dalmatian puppies are born pure white, and their spots only begin to appear after about two weeks.
Which breed is generally recognised as the smallest in the world?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Chihuahua
The Chihuahua, named after the Mexican state, is the smallest recognised breed, with many adults weighing under 3 kg (6.6 lb) and standing around 15 to 23 cm (6 to 9 in) tall.
The record for shortest dog ever is held by a Chihuahua called Milly, who measured just 9.65 cm (3.8 in) tall.
Which breed was originally developed in Germany to hunt badgers in their burrows?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Dachshund
Dachshund is German for badger dog. Its long body and short legs let it follow badgers underground, and its loud bark helped hunters locate it below the surface.
The hot dog is sometimes said to have been nicknamed the dachshund sausage by German immigrants in America before it got its modern name.
What is the name of Dorothy's dog in The Wizard of Oz?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Toto
Toto is Dorothy's little black dog in L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel and the 1939 film, where he was played by a Cairn Terrier named Terry.
Terry reportedly earned 125 dollars a week for the film, more than some of the human actors playing Munchkins.
Hachiko, the loyal dog honoured with a statue outside Tokyo's Shibuya Station, belonged to which breed?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Akita
Hachiko was an Akita who kept returning to Shibuya Station every day for more than nine years after his owner, professor Hidesaburo Ueno, died in 1925.
His preserved body is displayed at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo, and the 2009 film Hachi starred Richard Gere.
How many permanent teeth does an adult dog normally have?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
42
Adult dogs have 42 permanent teeth, ten more than an adult human: 12 incisors, 4 canines, 16 premolars and 10 molars, arranged for gripping, tearing and crushing.
Puppies are born toothless and grow 28 deciduous teeth, which are replaced by the adult set at around four to six months.
Which pair of colours do dogs struggle to tell apart because they have only two types of colour receptor?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Red and green
Dogs are dichromats, with cone cells sensitive to blue and yellow light. Reds and greens look like muddy yellows and greys to them, much like a red green colour blind person.
This is why a red ball on green grass can be hard for a dog to find, while a blue or yellow toy stands out.
Which breed, originating in northern China, is known for its distinctive blue black tongue?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Chow Chow
The Chow Chow is famous for its blue black tongue and gums, a trait caused by heavy pigmentation and written into the breed standard, along with a lion like ruff and stilted gait.
The Chinese Shar Pei is the only other breed whose standard calls for a bluish black tongue.
Which breed ended the Labrador Retriever's 31 year run as America's most popular dog in the American Kennel Club's 2022 rankings?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
French Bulldog
The American Kennel Club announced in March 2023 that the French Bulldog had taken first place in its 2022 registration rankings, ending the Labrador Retriever's 31 year reign at the top.
Frenchies became popular in the late 1800s among lace workers who moved from Nottingham to France, which is how they got their name.
Roughly how long is a dog's pregnancy?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
63 days
A dog's gestation lasts about 63 days, or roughly nine weeks, from ovulation to birth, with most healthy litters arriving somewhere between 58 and 68 days regardless of breed.
Litter size varies hugely by breed: toy breeds often have one to four puppies, while a Neapolitan Mastiff once produced a litter of 24.
The famous 1925 sled dog relay to Nome, Alaska, which inspired the Iditarod race, carried serum to fight which disease?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Diphtheria
In January 1925 twenty mushers and about 150 dogs relayed diphtheria antitoxin 674 miles (1,085 km) to Nome in under six days. Balto led the final team and Togo covered the longest, most dangerous leg.
A statue of Balto has stood in New York's Central Park since December 1925, while Togo's preserved body is displayed in Alaska.
Zeus, recognised by Guinness World Records as the tallest dog ever at 111.8 cm (44 in) at the shoulder, belonged to which breed?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Great Dane
Zeus, a Great Dane from Otsego, Michigan, measured 111.8 cm (44 in) from paw to shoulder in 2011 and stood 2.26 m (7 ft 5 in) on his hind legs. He died in 2014 aged five.
Giant breeds pay for their size with short lives: Great Danes typically live only eight to ten years.
Snuppy, the first cloned dog, was born in South Korea in 2005. What breed was he?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Afghan Hound
Snuppy was an Afghan Hound cloned at Seoul National University from an ear cell of an adult male, born on 24 April 2005 and named Time magazine's invention of the year.
Dogs proved far harder to clone than sheep or cats because their eggs mature outside the ovary, which is why Snuppy came nine years after Dolly.
Which breed has won Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show more times than any other, with 15 wins?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Wire Fox Terrier
Wire Fox Terriers have taken Westminster's top prize 15 times, from Matford Vic in 1915 through to King in 2019, nearly double the eight wins of the second placed Scottish Terrier.
Westminster, first held in 1877, is the second oldest continuously held sporting event in the United States after the Kentucky Derby.
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All Science quizzes →About the Dogs Quiz
An adult dog carries 42 teeth, a Great Dane named Zeus once stood 111.8 cm (44 in) at the shoulder, and in 2022 the French Bulldog ended the Labrador Retriever's 31 year reign as America's favourite breed. Dogs have lived alongside us for well over 15,000 years, yet most owners know surprisingly little about what makes them tick.
These 15 questions cover breed origins, canine senses and biology, record holders and the famous dogs of science and history, from Toto in Oz to the sled teams that raced diphtheria serum to Nome. It suits dog lovers, pub quiz regulars and anyone who has ever argued about which breed is really the fastest.
You will find 15 multiple choice questions here, each with four options. Difficulty: Easy. Most people finish in about 6 minutes, and every answer comes with a short explanation and one extra fact worth keeping.
How to play
Read the question and pick one of the four answers. The correct answer is revealed straight away with a short explanation, then press Next question to keep going. At the end you get your score out of 15 and a full review of your round. Play again any time and the questions arrive in a fresh order. There is no timer and no account.
Good to know before you play
How many teeth does an adult dog have?
An adult dog has 42 permanent teeth, compared with 32 in an adult human. Puppies start with 28 baby teeth that fall out between about four and six months of age.
Are dogs really colour blind?
No. Dogs see colour, but they have two kinds of colour receptor instead of our three, so they see mostly blues and yellows and struggle to tell red from green.
Which dog breed is the most popular?
Rankings change yearly. The Labrador Retriever topped the American Kennel Club list for 31 years until the French Bulldog took first place in the 2022 rankings.
Answer key: all 15 questions with explanations
- Domestic dogs are descended from which wild animal?
Grey wolf Genetic studies show that all domestic dogs descend from an ancient population of grey wolves, with domestication beginning at least 15,000 years ago, long before any plant or other animal was farmed. The dingo is itself a feral descendant of early domestic dogs that reached Australia with humans several thousand years ago. - Which breed is famous for its white coat covered in black spots and its long association with fire stations?
Dalmatian Dalmatians were bred as carriage dogs that ran alongside horse drawn vehicles, so fire brigades kept them to clear the way and calm the horses pulling steam pumpers. Dalmatian puppies are born pure white, and their spots only begin to appear after about two weeks. - Which breed is generally recognised as the smallest in the world?
Chihuahua The Chihuahua, named after the Mexican state, is the smallest recognised breed, with many adults weighing under 3 kg (6.6 lb) and standing around 15 to 23 cm (6 to 9 in) tall. The record for shortest dog ever is held by a Chihuahua called Milly, who measured just 9.65 cm (3.8 in) tall. - Which breed was originally developed in Germany to hunt badgers in their burrows?
Dachshund Dachshund is German for badger dog. Its long body and short legs let it follow badgers underground, and its loud bark helped hunters locate it below the surface. The hot dog is sometimes said to have been nicknamed the dachshund sausage by German immigrants in America before it got its modern name. - What is the name of Dorothy's dog in The Wizard of Oz?
Toto Toto is Dorothy's little black dog in L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel and the 1939 film, where he was played by a Cairn Terrier named Terry. Terry reportedly earned 125 dollars a week for the film, more than some of the human actors playing Munchkins. - Hachiko, the loyal dog honoured with a statue outside Tokyo's Shibuya Station, belonged to which breed?
Akita Hachiko was an Akita who kept returning to Shibuya Station every day for more than nine years after his owner, professor Hidesaburo Ueno, died in 1925. His preserved body is displayed at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo, and the 2009 film Hachi starred Richard Gere. - How many permanent teeth does an adult dog normally have?
42 Adult dogs have 42 permanent teeth, ten more than an adult human: 12 incisors, 4 canines, 16 premolars and 10 molars, arranged for gripping, tearing and crushing. Puppies are born toothless and grow 28 deciduous teeth, which are replaced by the adult set at around four to six months. - Which pair of colours do dogs struggle to tell apart because they have only two types of colour receptor?
Red and green Dogs are dichromats, with cone cells sensitive to blue and yellow light. Reds and greens look like muddy yellows and greys to them, much like a red green colour blind person. This is why a red ball on green grass can be hard for a dog to find, while a blue or yellow toy stands out. - Which breed, originating in northern China, is known for its distinctive blue black tongue?
Chow Chow The Chow Chow is famous for its blue black tongue and gums, a trait caused by heavy pigmentation and written into the breed standard, along with a lion like ruff and stilted gait. The Chinese Shar Pei is the only other breed whose standard calls for a bluish black tongue. - Which breed ended the Labrador Retriever's 31 year run as America's most popular dog in the American Kennel Club's 2022 rankings?
French Bulldog The American Kennel Club announced in March 2023 that the French Bulldog had taken first place in its 2022 registration rankings, ending the Labrador Retriever's 31 year reign at the top. Frenchies became popular in the late 1800s among lace workers who moved from Nottingham to France, which is how they got their name. - Roughly how long is a dog's pregnancy?
63 days A dog's gestation lasts about 63 days, or roughly nine weeks, from ovulation to birth, with most healthy litters arriving somewhere between 58 and 68 days regardless of breed. Litter size varies hugely by breed: toy breeds often have one to four puppies, while a Neapolitan Mastiff once produced a litter of 24. - The famous 1925 sled dog relay to Nome, Alaska, which inspired the Iditarod race, carried serum to fight which disease?
Diphtheria In January 1925 twenty mushers and about 150 dogs relayed diphtheria antitoxin 674 miles (1,085 km) to Nome in under six days. Balto led the final team and Togo covered the longest, most dangerous leg. A statue of Balto has stood in New York's Central Park since December 1925, while Togo's preserved body is displayed in Alaska. - Zeus, recognised by Guinness World Records as the tallest dog ever at 111.8 cm (44 in) at the shoulder, belonged to which breed?
Great Dane Zeus, a Great Dane from Otsego, Michigan, measured 111.8 cm (44 in) from paw to shoulder in 2011 and stood 2.26 m (7 ft 5 in) on his hind legs. He died in 2014 aged five. Giant breeds pay for their size with short lives: Great Danes typically live only eight to ten years. - Snuppy, the first cloned dog, was born in South Korea in 2005. What breed was he?
Afghan Hound Snuppy was an Afghan Hound cloned at Seoul National University from an ear cell of an adult male, born on 24 April 2005 and named Time magazine's invention of the year. Dogs proved far harder to clone than sheep or cats because their eggs mature outside the ovary, which is why Snuppy came nine years after Dolly. - Which breed has won Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show more times than any other, with 15 wins?
Wire Fox Terrier Wire Fox Terriers have taken Westminster's top prize 15 times, from Matford Vic in 1915 through to King in 2019, nearly double the eight wins of the second placed Scottish Terrier. Westminster, first held in 1877, is the second oldest continuously held sporting event in the United States after the Kentucky Derby.
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