What colours can dogs see?

IF you're a dog owner you may have wondered how your pooch views the world.

From what colours your dog can see to what animals are colour blind – here's everything you need to know.

Dogs see colours in a slightly different way to humans – with many believing that their canine companion can only see the world in black and white.

However, according to the RSPCA: ''Dogs actually see in different shades of blues and yellows.''

Their eyes detect fewer colours than ours, so their perception is similar to humans with colour blindness.

This is why yellow and blue toys make the biggest impression on your pet.

Why can dogs only see blue and yellow?

This is because humans have blue, red and green cones, a type of photoreceptor cell in the retina.

Whereas dogs have two – blue and another that falls between the human red and green cone.

This limited colour perception is known as dichromatic vision.

However, canine vision is superior to ours in other ways.

For example, they are much better at detecting motion and can see more clearly in low light, PetMD says.

What other animals are colour blind?

Aside from dogs, a number of other animals are also thought to be colour blind.

Colour blindness is described as seeing colours differently, and having difficulty telling colours apart – which is why dogs tend to rely more on their super sense of smell to detect what is going on in the distance.

Horses, like dogs, have two cone photoreceptor cells in their eyes, which is otherwise known as dichromatic vision.

Research suggests that horses have the blue and green cone cells and struggle to see red because of this.

Similarly, according to Cats Protection: ''Cats have fewer cones, and only have two types, which means that the colours red and green appear to them as shades of grey.

''They are much better at seeing blue and yellow shades, but rely more on brightness than colour when viewing the world.''

Other animals that are thought to be colour blind include whales, owls and raccoons.

What do dogs see when they watch TV?

Dog owners may occasionally spot their canine companion mesmerised by the images on screen – whether that be on a computer, tablet or TV.

When watching TV, dogs have a higher flicker rate than humans.

This means that while the rate of frames per seconds for humans is 60, for dogs a smooth image is achieved only above 70 frames per seconds.

Therefore, higher-resolution screens provide a much nicer source of entertainment for pets in the house compared to an older television set.

Do sighthounds have better vision than other dog breeds?

When it comes to discussing dogs and their vision a question many want to know is – do sighthounds have better vision than other dog breeds?

Sighthounds, as their name suggests, have a much better sense of sight.

What colours can dogs see? | The Sun