50 Fun Facts About Dogs Trivia for Seniors

Lassie, the loyal star of film and television, is what breed of dog?

Eric Knight created her in a 1938 short story, and a male dog named Pal played her in the 1943 film.

The Lassie television series ran from 1954 until what year?

It was the ninth longest-running scripted primetime series in American history when it ended.

Rin Tin Tin, the silent-film star, was what breed?

An American soldier, Lee Duncan, rescued him from a World War I battlefield in France and nicknamed him Rinty.

Which studio released the 1957 tear-jerker Old Yeller?

It was based on Fred Gipson's 1956 novel and became the fifth highest-grossing film of 1957.

Toto in The Wizard of Oz was played by a female dog of what breed?

Her real name was Terry, and Toto was her only credited role.

Fala, the famous White House dog of the 1940s, belonged to which president?

The Scottish Terrier lived from 1940 to 1952 and is buried beside the president at Hyde Park.

In his famous 1952 'Checkers speech', Richard Nixon vowed to keep a gift dog of what breed?

The black-and-white puppy had been named Checkers by his children, and the speech saved his place on the ticket.

Millie, the White House dog who 'wrote' a bestselling book, belonged to which first couple?

The English Springer Spaniel was named after a family friend, Mildred Kerr.

Snoopy first appeared in the Peanuts comic strip in which year?

Charles Schulz based the early drawings on Spike, one of his childhood dogs.

Disney's Pluto first appeared in a 1930 Mickey Mouse cartoon called what?

He debuted as a bloodhound and went on to appear in 89 short films.

Huckleberry Hound's cartoon made history in 1960 as the first animated series to win what?

Daws Butler voiced the blue hound, using a similar drawl to his earlier dog characters.

Marmaduke, the comic-strip dog drawn by Brad Anderson from 1954, is what breed?

The strip about the Winslow family and their enormous dog ran for over 60 years.

Nipper, the dog listening to a gramophone in the painting His Master's Voice, was painted by whom?

He painted it in 1898, three years after Nipper died, and the image became the trademark of HMV and RCA Victor.

Which makeup artist applied the eye ring on Pete the Pup of the Our Gang comedies?

The first dog to play Pete was an American Pit Bull Terrier called Pal the Wonder Dog.

In Disney's Lady and the Tramp, Lady is what breed of dog?

Jim Dear gives her to Darling as a Christmas puppy in 1909, and she later shares spaghetti with the mutt Tramp.

Which 1959 Disney comedy has Fred MacMurray's teenage son turn into an Old English Sheepdog?

A cursed Borgia ring inscribed 'In canis corpore transmuto' does the trick.

Benji, the scruffy movie star of the 1970s, was what kind of dog?

Several different mixed-breed dogs have played him since the first film in 1974.

Big Mama Thornton recorded 'Hound Dog' in 1952, but whose 1956 version topped the pop chart for 11 weeks?

Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller wrote it, and Elvis's record was number one on the pop, country and R&B charts at once.

Which Scottish Terrier hero of Edinburgh is said to have guarded his master's grave for 14 years?

He was actually a Skye Terrier or Dandie Dinmont, and his statue still stands near the churchyard.

Laika, the first animal to orbit the Earth in 1957, was launched by which country?

She was a stray mongrel picked up on the streets of Moscow and flew aboard Sputnik 2.

Balto, the sled dog honored in Central Park, helped carry medicine to which Alaskan town in 1925?

The diphtheria antitoxin went by train to Nenana and then by dog sled relay; Balto ran the final leg.

Hachiko, the dog who waited nearly ten years at a Tokyo station for his late master, was what breed?

Professor Ueno died in 1925, and a bronze statue of Hachiko now stands at Shibuya Station.

Sergeant Stubby, the most decorated dog of World War I, served with American troops in which country?

He warned his regiment of mustard gas attacks and once caught a German soldier by the seat of his pants.

Which sled dog ran the longest, most dangerous leg of the 1925 serum run, though Balto got the fame?

Both dogs belonged to musher Leonhard Seppala; a 2019 Disney film finally told Togo's side.

Which famous rescue dog of the Alps was credited with saving more than 40 lives around 1800?

He worked for the Great St Bernard Hospice, and his breed was later named the St Bernard.

America's first Seeing Eye school opened in 1929 after Morris Frank was paired with a dog he renamed what?

He gave the same name to all six of his later guide dogs.

Which Russian scientist trained dogs to salivate at a signal, discovering classical conditioning?

He was a physiologist and had already won a Nobel Prize for his work on digestion.

The name Dachshund means what in German?

The long, low hounds were bred to chase badgers into their burrows.

Which breed's name comes from German, even though most people picture it clipped in fancy French style?

It is the Pudel in German, and larger ones were originally used to retrieve waterfowl.

Which breed is famous for following a human scent trail even days later?

It was originally bred to hunt deer and boar and, since the Middle Ages, to track people.

Which is the smallest recognized dog breed in the world?

It is named after a state in Mexico.

Which breed's puppies are born pure white, with their spots appearing in the first weeks?

The spots are usually black or liver and often show up within about ten days.

Which large breed has webbed paws and is famous for water rescues?

'Newfies' have a double coat that keeps them warm in icy seas.

Which African breed is known as the 'barkless dog' because it makes a yodel-like sound instead?

Its unusually shaped larynx is the reason, and the New Guinea singing dog does the same.

Which breed's tongue is blue-black?

Legend links the breed to black-tongued, lion-like war dogs of Central Asia.

Zeus, the tallest dog ever recorded, stood how tall at the shoulder?

Over the years the tallest living dog has almost always been a Great Dane.

Bluey, the oldest dog ever verified, was an Australian Cattle Dog who lived to what age?

She lived on a farm in Victoria from 1910 to 1939 and still holds the Guinness record.

Which country's queen kept more than 30 corgis over her long reign?

Queen Elizabeth II favoured the Pembroke Welsh Corgi, whose name means 'dwarf dog' in Welsh.

Which US president's family dog, Bo, was a Portuguese Water Dog?

Malia and Sasha named him partly after singer Bo Diddley.

Roughly how many teeth does a grown dog have?

Puppies start with 28 baby teeth, and the adult jaw is built for eating meat.

Dogs mostly cool themselves by panting and by sweating through which part of the body?

They have very few sweat glands in their skin, so breathing does most of the work.

Dogs see the world in which limited range of colours?

Their sight is dichromatic, but their smell and hearing are far better than ours.

Dogs were the first animals humans ever domesticated, at least how many years ago?

That is before farming began, and genetic studies suggest it may have started even earlier.

The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show has been held since 1877 in which American city?

It ran at Madison Square Garden almost without interruption from 1877 to 2020.

Crufts, the world's largest dog show, is held in which country?

It has run since 1891 and is organised by The Kennel Club.

The Iditarod sled dog race, held every March, runs from Anchorage to which town?

It began in 1973 to test the best mushers and honours the 1925 serum run.

Which two comic-strip and cartoon dogs are Great Danes?

Scooby is the lifelong companion of Shaggy Rogers, and Marmaduke belongs to the Winslow family.

Eddie, the scene-stealing dog on the sitcom Frasier, was played by a Jack Russell Terrier named what?

He won the part after only six months of training and even had an official calendar.

Which 1992 comedy starred Charles Grodin and a huge Saint Bernard named after a composer?

John Hughes co-wrote it under a pen name, and it made $147 million worldwide.

Buck, hero of The Call of the Wild, is stolen from a California ranch and sold to work as what?

The 1903 novel is set in the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush.