Trivia

By the Numbers

Four: the number of toes a parrot has on each foot.

Three: the number of meals growing kittens up to six months of age need.

Hamsters have four toes on each front foot and five on each back foot. 

1/4 ounce of baking chocolate eaten by a 10-pound dog can cause vomiting, diarrhea, seizures, hyperactivity and increased thirst, urination, and heart rate.From ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center

Americans keep 68 million dogs, 73 million cats, 19 million birds,19 million pocket pets, 9 million reptiles and 165 million fish as pets.

The bootlace worm (Lineus longissimus), averaging 15 feet, can grow to 100 feet in length. 

One quart of seawater holds more than 20,000 different types of microbes. 

A 2 inch long bat has a tongue 3.3 inches long.  This is the Anoura fistulata bat, found in the Ecuadoran Andes.  This bat feeds on the nectar of Centropogan nigricans, and pollinates this plant which has a neck the same length as the bat’s tongue.

The Olympia oyster pumps 8-15 gallons of seawater a day through its system to gather algae as food.

Definitions

A trichobezoar is a damp wad of undigested hair, moistened by bile and other digestive fluids that’s commonly referred to as a hairball.

Dog-Nose: a cordial composed of warm porter, moist sugar, gin, and nutmeg.

Sundogs are bright spots that form about 22 degrees on either side of the Sun from light reflecting off ice crystals in the clouds. 

If your feet were like all parrots’, with two front facing toes and two facing the back, you would have zygodactyls feet.

If your cat has stripes, it is a “tabby.” All tabbies have thin lines on the face, expressive markings around the eyes, and an “M” on the forehead.  From the Cat Fanciers’ Association

Factoids
All birds’ necks are long, even when they do not appear that way. Hummingbirds and quail are good examples. Their necks, folded in an “s” shape, are concealed beneath their feathers.

Petite pooches, dogs under 25 pounds, have become more popular over the last decade.  Breeds increasing in popularity fastest include Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, French Bulldogs, Brussels Griffon, Papillons, Chinese Cresteds, and Norwich Terriers.

The Labrador Retriever has been America’s most popular dog 1991-2006.

The United States and Burma are the only countries that do not use the metric system for their principal units of measurement.