A Pekingese from Texas named Puggy, now holds the top spot in the Guinness Book of World Records for "Dog With the Longest Tongue." It measures in at 4.5 inches.
As you might imagine, that does cause some difficulties for the fella. His owner, Becky Stanford of Fort Worth, Tex. has to chop up his food into "really small pieces" because he kind of chews with that big old tongue of his. But, Stanford says, he does just fine with it. (Incidentally, Gene Simmons prefers baby food.) We're glad that the former stray country dog has bragging rights. And we're just here to bask in the glory.
With so many puppy videos and so little time, we've gone the extra mile and begun cataloging some of the finest YouTube offerings, separating each collection by breed in a feature called Puppy Party!
Today's round-up features the precious Pekingese!
"No offense, that's just how my tongue looks. All the time."
Click the dachshund to flip through our short-legged pups gallery. Photo: flygraphix/Flickr
Who are you calling shorty?
Dogs like dachshunds, basset hounds and corgis are famous for their stumpy little legs. Now researchers at the National Human Genome Research Institute in Maryland have figured out where the low-slung dogs get their stubby stems from, reports National Geographic News.
The researchers discovered that 19 short-legged dog breeds all share a single genetic mutation, which suggests that most short-legged dogs descended from a single stunted ancestor. It's possible that the gene could have arisen as many as 30,000 years ago, long before humans started breeding dogs for physical traits.
The researchers say the study, published in the journal Science, is proof that one little change to a gene can have a big impact. "There may just be a small number of major genetic changes that create all the different shapes and sizes of dogs," study co-author Heidi Parker said.
The short-legged gene is found in breeds from Shih Tzus and Scottish Terriers to Basset Hounds and Pekingese. For a (short) look at these squat pups, check out our gallery of stubby-legged dogs. Just remember, they're not short -- they're vertically challenged!
kelly-bell, Flickr
Time-Lapse Tortoise Noms Salad
