WEBVTT - What Colors Can Dogs See?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of I Heart Radio, Hey,

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<v Speaker 1>brain Stuff, Lauren Vogel Bond. Here in school, you might

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<v Speaker 1>have learned the acronym roy G biv to remember the

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<v Speaker 1>colors of the rainbow. While the average human can see

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<v Speaker 1>a spectrum of color from red to violet, a rainbow

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<v Speaker 1>appears slightly different to dogs. Instead of gradually transitioning from

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<v Speaker 1>red to orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet, a

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<v Speaker 1>dog's visible spectrum starts with a deep brown, transitioning into

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<v Speaker 1>a lighter brown, yellow, gray, light blue, and then dark blue.

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<v Speaker 1>But why is that? Humans are what's called trichromats. We

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<v Speaker 1>have three different types of cells called cones and our eyes,

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<v Speaker 1>and each type of cone is designed to distinguish a

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<v Speaker 1>specific wavelength of light. Combined, these three types of cones

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<v Speaker 1>allow you to distinguish up staggering million colors or more.

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<v Speaker 1>On the other hand, dogs and most other mammal are

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<v Speaker 1>die chromats, which means they only have two types of cones.

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<v Speaker 1>This doesn't mean that they see the world in black

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<v Speaker 1>and white, only that they can distinguish fewer colors than

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<v Speaker 1>the average human. Don't feel too sorry for your canine companion, though,

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<v Speaker 1>Even with just two types of cones. They can see

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<v Speaker 1>somewhere around ten thousand different shades, and they can see

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<v Speaker 1>much better in dimmer light than you can. Dogs have

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<v Speaker 1>many more rods in their retinas than humans do. Rods

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<v Speaker 1>are another type of cell in the eyes, their light

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<v Speaker 1>receptors that are sensitive to changes in light and darkness

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<v Speaker 1>and to movement, but they don't perceive color. It's likely

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<v Speaker 1>that dogs evolved to have more rods than cones in

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<v Speaker 1>their eyes, since being able to detect a moving animal

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<v Speaker 1>in the dark was more useful when hunting for food.

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<v Speaker 1>When it comes to colors, doggy vision is very similar

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<v Speaker 1>to that of humans who have red green color blindness.

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<v Speaker 1>Alike humans with this condition, dogs can easily interpret colors

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<v Speaker 1>with shorter wavelengths blue, but may have trouble with colors

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<v Speaker 1>with longer wavelengths like red. They see in a rich

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<v Speaker 1>spectrum of color, but may mix up shades of red

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<v Speaker 1>and green, or those with red or green components like

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<v Speaker 1>purple or teal. Since dogs are unable to distinguish the

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<v Speaker 1>color red, they simply interpret it as a dark brown.

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<v Speaker 1>All yellow, green, or orange objects appear in various shades

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<v Speaker 1>of yellow or yellow, brown, purple, which consists of red

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<v Speaker 1>and blue, looks like pure blue to dogs because they

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<v Speaker 1>can't interpret the red component. The blue green hue of

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<v Speaker 1>oceans and other bodies of water likely appears to your

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<v Speaker 1>dog in various shades of gray, So keep your canines

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<v Speaker 1>color capabilities in mind the next time you're shopping for

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<v Speaker 1>the perfect toy for your best friend. Skip the bright reds,

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<v Speaker 1>which appear as muddy brown to your pooch, and stick

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<v Speaker 1>to colors like blue or yellow that your dog can

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<v Speaker 1>truly appreciate. Today's episode based on the article what colors

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<v Speaker 1>can Dog see on how stuff works dot com written

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<v Speaker 1>by Vambi Turner and brain Stuff is production of I

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<v Speaker 1>Heart Radio in partnership with how stuff Works dot Com,

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<v Speaker 1>and it's produced by Tyler Clang. Four more podcasts from

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<v Speaker 1>my heart Radio visit the heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

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<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen to your favorite shows