Dog Daze
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Hi, I'm Bryan Yeaton for The Weather Notebook and that's my dog Blossom . To her, every day is a dog day. But to us, dog days only come around this time of year. The dog days of summer generally run from early July to -August. The expression dog days comes from the fact Sirius, the Dog Star, can be seen this time of year near the rising sun. The ancient Romans believed that it added to the suns strength, isn't that right Blossom?

Barks...

Other dog weather? How about 'raining cats and dogs', a that refers to heavy rain. One explanation for thiscomes from the latin phrase "cata doxus" which sounds likeand dogs'. It means 'contrary to normal' like abnormally heavy rain. Another explanation? In the 1500's, cats and dogs used to burrow into thatched roofs to sleep. When it rained, the roofs became slippery and down the critters would slide. Below, it looked to be raining cats and dogs.

The French have a term for cold and rainy weather..."Il fait temps de chien" (pardon myFrench)) and a German word for beastly weather is "Hundwetter". 'Hund' meaning 'dog' and 'wetter' meaning 'weather.'

So, why are dogs associated with bad weather? Well, who knows, but I'd rather associate Blossom with companionship, not with uncomfortable weather.

If you know of words or phrases that associate animals with the weather, please let us know. Give me a call, toll free at 1-888-724-6001. That's 1-888-RAIN-001. Or send us an email by visiting our website at weathernotebook.org.

The Weather Notebook is a production of the Mt. Washington Observatory and supported by Subaru, the beauty of all wheel drive and to the National Science Foundation. And special thanks today to producer Margaret Landsman's dog, Blossom