What did the ancients sacrifice at the beginning of the Dog Days?

The correct answer to this question is A brown dog. Many often use the phrase "Dog Days Of Summer" to reference the end of the season, when the late heat comes. It is when the kids are getting ready to return back to school, and the final cookouts of the year were occurring.

Despite this being a common phrase, some still do not know the origin of it. Ancient Romans get credit for this phrase, which they named after Sirius. It is the brightest star, after the Sun. The weather was so hot that the Romans sacrificed a brown dog, in hopes to appease Sirius and free them from the heat.