Dogs And The Tattoos That Honour Them
No, this is not a post about the very disturbing trend that began cropping up a couple of years ago of having your pet tattooed. Rather, it is a tribute to man’s and woman’s best friend, and the ways we immortalise our best buddies in ink.
Dogs are amazing creatures. Providing unconditional love and affection, they only ever see the best in us. In fact, they often make us want to become better versions of ourselves to live up to their idea of us.
Increasing popularity of pet portraits
There is a saying that until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened. And there is indeed something incredibly special about the bond between human and companion – especially if judged by the ever-growing popularity of pet portrait tattoos.
There is a reason why they are the most sought-after animal tattoo (ok, maybe lions are just slightly ahead), and why their portraits undoubtedly evoke the most ooohs and aaaws among our friend groups. They come in many different forms, including large-scale black and grey portraits the detail and lifelikeness of which have evolved along with the style, to fine-line tributes to lost furry friends, like the ones Miley Cyrus has opted for.
Dogs are just really cool
Other than their loyalty and goofiness, there are so many amazing things to learn about dogs. For instance, their sense of smell is at least 40% better than that of humans. Imagine what a different reality they live in compared to us! Some breeds even gain as much stimulation from sniffing as they do from physical exercise (you probably know what we are talking about if you have one of these). Their noses can also detect heat. Dogs can also hear things that are much further away than we do, and, of course, can detect a higher frequency of sound.
Dogs are (on average, it differs between breeds and individuals) as intelligent as a two-year-old. Feel free to use that as a counter-argument next time someone questions your bond with your dog by insisting that they are not a child. Furthermore, their nose prints are unique, just like a human fingerprint, and all dogs dream – puppies and senior dogs even more so than adult dogs. And as if that wasn’t enough – yawning is contagious for dogs, just as it is for humans.
A human’s blood pressure goes down when petting a dog – and vice versa. Meaning, the dog’s blood pressure goes down when being petted, we are not sure what happens if the dog pets the human.
World records and everything in between
The world’s smallest dog according to the Guinness Book of World Records is a female Chihuahua named Miracle Milly from Dorado, Puerto Rico. She measures 9.65 cm tall and weighs roughly 1 pound. On the other end of the spectrum, the world’s biggest living dog is Zeus, a two-year-old grey and brown American Great Dane from Bedford, Texas, USA. He stands at 1.046 meters.
Whoever your favourite four-legged friend is, whether they be tiny like Milly, a gentle giant like Zeus or anything in between, the love we feel for them translates into meaningful ink that honour the bond the two of you share.
