So you love dogs, right? You think you know your stuff. Or maybe you know nothing and fancied a bit of light reading... Either way this should give you some fun new facts to show off at your next pawty.

Fact 1: There are more than 150 dog breeds, and they are divided into 8 categories; hound, toy, working, sporting, terrier, herding, non-sporting and miscellaneous (someone really gave up on that last one).

Fact 2: It's been scientifically proven that you can lower your blood pressure just by stroking a dog.

Fact 3: Labradors have been on the Kennel Club's most popular breed list for 25 years running (I mean, just look at that face.)

Fact 4: A dogs' sense of smell is 1 million times better than ours. 1 MILLION. Let that sink in for a second. And if I think Patch's farts smell...

Fact 5: If never neutered, a pair of dogs and their puppies can add more than 66,000 dogs, to the dog population, in a matter of 6 years. What's that they say about rabbits...?

Fact 6: The Norwegian Lundehund has 6 toes for each foot, erected ears that it can control, and can tip it's head backwards to touch the backbone. Move over contortionists.

Fact 7: Dogs can hear 10 times better than humans. Pardon?

Fact 8: Dogosaurs can be tracked back to 40 million years ago in the form of an animal that looked much like a weasel. It was called Miacis, which later turned into Tomarctus and Tomarctus is the forefather of three main canines: dogs, wolves and jackals.

Fact 9: Dogs have been recorded running up to 19 miles per hour. Doglympics, please.

Neopoltian Mastiff - less of a gladiator these days... or is he?

Fact 10: The Neapolitan Mastiff was 'honoured' to fight alongside the Roman knights. They wore body armor and bore blades to cause damage to enemy horses. The dog almost went extinct after WWII, but an Italian painter protected the breed.

Fact 11: Ancient Egyptians didn't just love cats. They stained their hair with mud, removed their eyebrows and cried out loud for days in the event of the death of their pet dogs.

Fact 12: Dalmatians aren't born with spots - they're white when they're puppies (OK, maybe you knew that one.

Fact 13: Dogs have three eyelids; the third one protects and keeps the eye lubricated.

Fact 14: When dogs poop, they preferably choose a place aligned with the magnetic field of Earth. Probably why they do a few circles before actually plopping.

Fact 15: A Basenji can't actually bark... they 'yodel' instead.

Fact 16: Dogs' shoulder blades aren't attached to their skeletons, which makes them more flexible.

Fact 17: In around 1800, Barry, a St Bernard rescue dog saved the lives of 40 people. He was the most successful rescue dog to date.

Fact 18: Dogs are omnivorous NOT carnivorous. That's why Fido keeps trying to eat your cereal.

Fact 19: The Poodle's distinctive hair cut was originally for a functional purpose - to allow it to swim better, but keep the joints warm.

Fact 20: The most expensive dog ever sold was a Tibetan Mastiff puppy who recently got sold in China for $1.5 million. Gees.

Fact 21: Using scent to mark territory is a primitive animal instinct and when dogs kick the ground after having a pee, they are actually using their scent glands to mark their territory - not just trying to kick things in your general direction.

Fact 22: History shows people started petting dogs roughly 12,000 years ago - about the same time everyone's blood pressure started reducing, I guess.

Fact 23: Kublai Khan owned 5,000 Mastiffs. This is the biggest number of dogs ever owned by one person. I'm good with 4.

This guy isn't tracking anything any time soon.

Fact 24: Bloodhounds are notorious for their unmatched skill to trace scents as old as 300 hours.

Fact 25: No one can keep a dog as a pet in Iran, unless they first prove that the dog is required as a hunting or guardian dog.

Fact 26: 'French Poodles' actually originate in Germany, where 'puddle' means 'splashing dog'.

Fact 27: Chow Chows and Shar-peis have black tongues.

Fact 28: Dogs have 321 bones in their body.

Fact 29: The oldest dog fossil goes back to approximately 10,000 B.C.

Fact 30: After the end of the First World War the German Government tamed the first batch of guide dogs to serve the soldiers who lost their eyesight in the war.

Fact 31: Boxer's were named because of the way they play with their front paws.

Fact 32: Supposedly the Saluki was the first breed to be tamed, by the Egyptians.