Dog and Cat Trivia Challenge 1.3

Hi everyone and thanks for joining me on this episode of Val Talk’s Pets. It’s time for another trivia challenge. Are you ready for dog and cat trivia 1.3? Grab your score card. Here we go!

Cat Vocabulary

Question: In terms of vocabulary how many words do you think a cat can learn or understand?

The answer is a bit vague actually. Apparently it is not as easy to measure how many words a cat can understand compared to a dog. For example, a cat will know its own name. Because it knows its name, there is no reason not to believe that they don’t know the names of other cats or dogs for that matter in their household.

Some people have been successful teaching a cat to communicate with language buttons by using food or some kind of rewards for picking the correct button to the item. I think if you are a cat parent you will know some of the words your cat knows.

My Rory knows his name, probably Tundra’s name, he knows, treats, he knows, go outside. He definitely knows, no, get down, stop that. He also knows, alley oop, I know that obviously has a back story.

So, as PetMD says, between 10 and 15 cue words is possible and I’m thinking that’s probably what Rory knows.

PetMD says that some of the common words a cat can learn are, “play, catnip, treat, water, walk and off”. I think most cats know that one. PetMD also suggests avoiding negative words like no or stop and substituting words like off or down. But, I think scratching the furniture is a hard no!

Tip: Remember never use a spray bottle of water to stop your cat from doing a certain behaviour. That’s a pretty antiquated practice and just makes the cat afraid of you.

Dog Vocabulary

Question: How many words can a dog understand or learn?

Answer: According to PetMD, “A 2022 study of 165 adult dogs found that according to their pet parents, dogs know an average of 89 words. But the range varied from as few as 15 words to as many as 215 words.”

The study revealed that amongst the words and phrases a dog knew, they included, “off, fetch, shake, and go get your….” Plus items like collar, ball, crate and vacuum. They also knew peanut butter, carrot, dinner and treat plus other foods.

Basically, dogs can have a level of word understanding equivalent to a 2 year old.

I was thinking about this as I read it and I guess that’s quite true with many of the words. For sure Tundra knows his name, and he knows, dinner, sit, paw, down, come, out, treats, put your toys to bed etc.

Summary:

• Cats: between 10–15 words
• Dogs: anywhere between 15–215 words and phrases

Sleep Patterns

Question: How many hours a day do you think your cat sleeps?

Answer: Cats will sleep an average of 12 to 16 hours a day. That is a lot of sleep!

Question: How many hours a day do dogs sleep?

Answer: Dogs will average 12 to 14 hours per day of sleep.

According to PetMD, certain breeds will sleep more or less than others. Working dogs like retrievers will tend to sleep less as they are hardwired to work. Bigger breeds and lapdog breeds tend to sleep more.

If you feel there are concerns with prolonged sleep, a trip to the vet can’t go remiss.

Taste Preferences

Cats and Sweetness

Question: Can cats taste sweet flavours?

Answer: No. PetMD states, “Researchers have discovered that cats, seemingly alone among the mammal groups, lack some of the proteins needed to create the gene that helps the body taste sweets.”

Cats actually only have about 500 taste buds. If your cat licks ice cream or yoghurt, they are more attracted to the fat than the sweet.

Dogs and Sweetness

Question: Can dogs taste sweet?

Answer: Yes, they can. Dogs have about 1700 taste buds, while humans have about 9000.

According to PetMD, “Sweet flavours are especially preferred by dogs, which likely stems from their ancestral diet including wild fruits and vegetables.”

Toxic Substances

Top 5 Most Toxic to Dogs

1. Xylitol – sugar substitute found in gum, candy, and some peanut butters
2. Chocolate – contains theobromine and caffeine, can lead to seizures and heart problems
3. Grapes and Raisins – can cause kidney damage and failure
4. Onions, garlic, chives and leeks – can damage red blood cells, leading to anemia
5. Alcohol – depresses the central nervous system, causes dehydration and serious problems

Top 5 Most Toxic to Cats

1. Lilies – even small ingestion can cause kidney failure
2. Human medications – ibuprofen and NSAIDS are highly toxic
3. Chocolate – same effects as with dogs
4. Onions, garlic and other alliums – damage red blood cells
5. Antifreeze and household cleaners – ethylene glycol is highly toxic

Farts – Do Pets Pass Gas?

Cats

Question: Do cats fart?
Answer: Yes, but most cat farts are silent and odourless.

Passing a small amount of gas every now and then is perfectly natural. But, if it is excessive, then this could indicate a problem.”

Dogs

Question: Do dogs fart?
Answer: Yes – and often with a strong smell!

Causes include:

• gulping air (especially in brachycephalic breeds)
• intolerance to certain foods
• fermentation in the gut

Tip: Use probiotics with at least 9 strains and higher CFU counts (3 billion+ recommended).

Bum Sniffing

Dogs

Question: Why do dogs smell each other’s bums?
Answer: According to Rover, dogs can learn about gender, health, diet, age, and mood.

Cats

Question: Do cats smell bums?
Answer: Yes. According to VCA Hospitals, cats can learn if another cat is aggressive, ill, or familiar.

Cats also use head butting as a greeting, releasing pheromones that create a sense of familiarity and social bonding.

Conclusion

Well, we’ve completed another quiz. How did you do overall? I hope you did well and also picked up a tidbit or two. It’s always fun to see what our knowledge is when it comes to our pets.

And of course if you need to look further into any of these topics, do a little research and have some fun, because as I say, knowing is caring.

Would you like me to also format this into a blog/article style layout (like with bullet lists, bold highlights, and callouts for trivia questions) so it’s easier to post online, or keep it just like a podcast transcript with headings?

Tagged as: pet trivia,  pet sleep habits,  toxic foods for pets,  cat vocabulary,  dog behaviour,  dog vocabulary,  cat behaviour,  pet podcast,  cat trivia,  dog trivia.