Scottish Country Dance of the Day

Etymologists think the term puppy may come from the word poupeé, a French word meaning doll or toy. The word puppy doesn't appear to have entered the English language until the late 16th century.  Prior to that, baby dogs were referred to as whelps. William Shakespeare's play, King John, is one of the earliest known works to use the term "puppy-dog."

The cuteness of puppies can elicit in some people the interesting response labeled as "Cute aggression."

Cute aggression is defined as superficially aggressive behaviour caused by seeing something cute, such as a human baby or young animal. People experiencing cute aggression may grit their teeth, clench their fists, or feel the urge to pinch and squeeze the object of cuteness, while not actually causing or intending to cause any harm.

Playful aggression is believed to be a type of dimorphous display, in which a positive experience elicits expressions usually associated with negative emotions. This behaviour occurs more commonly in individuals who experience dimorphous emotions across a range of situations, and may help to regulate emotions by balancing an overwhelmingly positive emotion with a negative response

Puppies are endlessly fascinating to humans, and come in all sizes, shapes, and even some surprising colours.  Sometimes, a puppy in a light-colored litter can be born green!  On two different occasions in 2017, in fact, British dogs made the news for giving birth to green-tinted puppies. In 2017, a 2-year-old chocolate lab in Lancashire, UK gave birth to a litter that included a mossy-green pup whom her owners named FiFi, after Fiona, the green-skinned ogre from Shrek. And a few months later, a golden retriever in the Scottish Highlands also gave birth to a puppy with a green coat, a male named Forest.  The fur of a light-haired puppy can get stained by biliverdin, a green pigment found in dog placentas, causing a green hue which gradually disappears over the course of a few weeks.

For more fascinating puppy facts, click the puppy painting, "He who pays the piper calls the tune " by John Hayes (1786-1866).

John Hayes was an animal painter during the late 19th Century who painted mainly dogs plus an occasional cat. His paintings were usually set in a playful scene, dogs having fun in a natural setting.