Commonly a standard male dog is called dog. Technically this implies that the dog has not fathered any young or been used for breeding.

But where did that term come from?

Generally, animals are called a collective name without a clear distinction. However, dogs, in this case, differ from cats.

Male cats are commonly called tomcats, and females are generally called cats, as an example.

But for dogs it’s different.

Before we speak about the term, we would like to share with you 5 reasons why you should get a pet if you do not already have one. If you have, than you should be familiar with these 5 benefits.

5 Ways a Pet is Good for You:

1. You have a loyal friend.

They say that a dog is one of the most loyal friends for a human. And that’s not false.

Almost any pet that you keep can become a friend figure, but a dog is one step ahead.

There’s just something about dogs, their loyalty and honest love they have for their owners just makes them a true best friend.

2. You practice responsibility.

Keeping a pet is not easy. It’s almost like a child that you need to take care of every day. To feed it, to walk it, to play with it, to take care of it if it gets sick. But that trains you to build responsibility.

3. It puts you into a Play mindset.

No matter how tough it is at work, when you come home and your pet excitingly waits for you, that stress fades away. And you start playing. And before you know it, you are in that Play Mindset.

This mindset is great help in people with depression as Play is one of the main activities that gets people out of depression. It’s also a mindset where one of the most creative ideas can be found.

4. There are countless health benefits of petting it.

It has been proven that dog owners have healthier hearts. This is because they need to walk their pets and that’s a healthy activity for the organ.

But not just that, petting your dog is therapeutic. It reduces stress and improves the mood. Children who grew up in families with dogs are reported to have bigger and stronger immune system. There are many other health benefits.

5. Massive laughter.

Everyone who ever had a pet can agree that spending time with it is just a big pile of laughs. Every time they discover something new, or try something different, they act in such ways that you cannot help but take your camera and film them. Why do you think there are so many pet videos? Because almost everything pets do is hilarious.

Ok, so we established why having a pet is good for you. Now, let’s get back at the origin of the word dog and all the different terms that are used.

History Of The Word Dog:

The origin of this word is a mystery. It is believed that the word originated from the old English word docga, which means powerful or strong.

This word was used in the 1500s to describe a specific mastiff type breed of dogs.

But before the 1500s, dogs were commonly called hounds, which came from the German word hund. The term hund is masculine, whereas hundin is the female version.

Male dogs were generally the default, the females required a different name. 

Cur was used for male dogs in general. But the use of the word eventually subsided as it carried an offensive sense to men.

The word sounded like a curse, and therefore, people did not like to use it.

Just like the word bitch which is the technical term for a female dog. But due to the sociolinguistic development of the word, it now has a negative sense attached to it.

If someone uses the word, people think of it as a curse instead of a pet. And due to the stigma, nobody calls the female dogs by this name anymore.

You should know that in a professional breeding community, a group of puppies is called a litter.

The male dog that is the father of a litter is called a sire. If you read the pedigree of a dog, you will see professional terms being used, such as stud dog or sire however there are many dog names out there.

The female dog that is the mother of the litter is called a dam. A female dog that has not given birth to a litter is called a bitch or a female dog.

So if you are interested in getting yourself a pet, now you know all the terms and the culture behind it.

If you still consider it, than our advice to you is to just do it. Get yourself a pet. If you feel you are capable to take care of it, do not wait.

You will make its life beautiful and it will give you many benefits as we addressed here.