Monday, October 06, 2008

Are Dogs Colorblind?

Today's topic at Heads or Tails is Black*or*White. I'm choosing Black AND White!

I've often heard it said that dogs see only in Black and White. This is a myth, though. Dogs see in color, just not the same way that humans see color.

For example, dogs see red, green, orange and yellow as... yellow. Dogs can see various shades of blue and purple. They can even differentiate shades of gray better than humans. So, while humans can see the full spectrum of colors, dogs are a bit limited.

However, they are far more outstanding than humans in their ability to see in dim or flickering light, respond quickly to an image, and detect even the slightest motion.

So while your pooch may not see the entire rainbow, he does see color, and his vision is superior to humans in other ways.

For a detailed description of some of the research that has been done on this topic, follow this link.


I'll end this by saying that one of the prettiest black and white dogs is the Dalmatian. When my son was little-bitty, he used to say he wanted to be a Dalmatian when he grew up. I can see why!



20 comments:

  1. Well, I've learned something today! And I'm so happy that dogs CAN see colors! Thank you for this!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Very interesting. I'm such a dog person, I agree that puppy is adorable!! Great post!

    Hugs Giggles

    ReplyDelete
  3. Interesting post. Thanks for that.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Interesting...when I went to school, I was always told that animals could see colors, just much more muted with their visual colorization than humans.

    I never heard about the myth you write about. That was all new to me. Hmmmm.

    Yep, I agree dalmations are super.

    Happy HoT day

    ReplyDelete
  5. See learned about chess and now about dogs sight....I love facts, I really do.

    My HoT Post

    ReplyDelete
  6. i didnt know that. how fascinating. i wonder how they know for sure. i know there are tests but its not like they can say yes or no lol

    ReplyDelete
  7. I always thought they were colorblind. Yay that they aren't!!! :)

    I never wanted to BE a Dalmatian, but I always wanted to HAVE one.

    ReplyDelete
  8. see i didn't know that. but i'm glad i would hate that they didn't know I was dressing them in some really good colors.

    ReplyDelete
  9. loved the post and enjoyed my visit. :o)
    Have a great day!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Well, I'll be! I always thought dogs saw in black & white. Thanks for clearing up my misconceptions!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I just noticed today that my dog was snubbing the red doggie biscuit. I guess they can see color!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Ah, interesting! And the Dalmation pup is adorable...

    ReplyDelete
  13. Very interesting what a cute dalmation.

    ReplyDelete
  14. huh...i learned something new

    ReplyDelete
  15. Ive always loved Dalmations too.
    Thanks for that, I had no idea.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I couldn't agree more! We have a big, beautiful dalmation who is a lover! (And calm!)

    ReplyDelete
  17. I never knew about it before. thanks for telling. mm, it's like dogs are having a partial blind color...

    I have posted about your award for me. thank you again :)

    ReplyDelete
  18. I just learned something! Thanks! I had no idea! =)

    ReplyDelete
  19. I had a dog named Oreo -- maybe he should have been my theme!

    ReplyDelete

I love comments! Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails