Mammals The Dog 
that a runner needs; and it is covered with coarse 
protective hair, instead of fine fur, which would 
be too warm a coat for so active an animal. 
The dog has a keen eye, but cannot see in the dark 
as well as does the cat. Yet the wild ancestors of 
‘the dog hunted mostly at night, their wonderful 
powers of smell rendering the keener sight unneces- 
sary. Our dog is so much superior to us in the 
ability to smell, that we cannot easily imagine how 
the world seems to him; his world is as full of scents 
as ours is full of objects which we see. The damp, 
soft skin that covers his nose is moist, and is in the 
best possible condition to carry the scent to the 
wide nostrils. The nostrils are situated in the 
most forward part of the face, and thus may be 
turned in any direction to receive the impressions 
which every breath of air brings to them. Hounds 
often follow the track of a fox several hours after 
it was made. The dog knows all his friends and 
enemies by their odor more surely than by their - 
appearance. 
The dog’s hearing is also very acute, and his ear- 
flaps are arranged so that they may be lifted in 
any direction, to guide the sound to the inner ear. 
His weapons for battle are his teeth, especially the 
great tushes, or canines; his molars are especially 
fitted for cutting meat, but not for chewing; these 
teeth cut the food into pieces small enough so that 
he can gulp them down, and the stomach does the 
rest. 
Most dogs bay when following their prey, which 
at first thought might seem bad policy, since the 
sound tells the victim where the enemy is; but we 
must remember that wolves hunt in packs, and the 
baying keeps the pack together. Dogs often howl 
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