Do cats have a sensitive sense of smell? A cat’s nose can smell far more things than you think.

Jan 03,2024
6Min

The structure of the cat's nose is very special. There are many folds inside the nose. Its olfactory organ is located in the deep part of the nasal cavity, called the olfactory mucosa. The area exposed to the air is very large, reaching 20 to 40 square centimeters, which is three times that of a human. Containing more than 200 million olfactory cells, it can smell musk diluted to one part 8 million. When the odor enters the nasal cavity with the inhaled air, it can stimulate the olfactory cells to produce exciting impulses

Cats are animals with a keen sense of smell

The sense of smell of animals in the world can be divided into three categories: no-olfactory category, blunt-olfactory category and sensitive-olfactory category. Some aquatic mammals, such as whales and dolphins, have no sense of smell and belong to the anosmia category; birds generally have an underdeveloped sense of smell and belong to the blunt sense of smell category; mammals such as pigs, sheep, cattle, horses, dogs, and cats all have highly developed senses of smell. The sense of smell is an animal with a sensitive sense of smell. The structure of the cat's nose is very special. There are many folds inside the nose. Its olfactory organ is located in the deep part of the nasal cavity, called the olfactory mucosa. The area exposed to the air is very large, reaching 20 to 40 square centimeters, which is three times that of a human. It contains 200 million Multiple olfactory cells can smell musk diluted to one part in 8 million. When the odor enters the nasal cavity with the inhaled air, it can stimulate the olfactory cells to generate exciting impulses, which are transmitted to the brain along the olfactory nerve, thereby causing the sense of smell.

Cats receive information through smell just like dogs

Cats use their noses and vomeronasal organs to absorb odors and pheromone messages from other cats in the environment. The vomeronasal organ, on the other hand, collects pheromones and chemicals to convey social, territorial, and sexual messages. Each cat releases its own unique pheromone signature from special glands in its eyes, corners of its mouth, tail, paw pads and other parts of its body. The vomeronasal apparatus captures these chemical communications from other cats and sends the signals to the brain for processing. These two scent-searching mechanisms provide a multidimensional picture of the world around the cat. In fact, cats rely on these scent maps to place scents at their strongest senses, well beyond what they see near their eyes.

Can distinguish territories by taste

Tag field. Cats use urine and pheromones to delineate their home boundaries and regularly review areas where the scent has disappeared. This may include your furniture and walls, and even you. Yes, those cheek rubs and gentle head bumps are one of your fur baby's territorial prizes when it claims you. It's unclear whether the cats left traces of cats elsewhere, in their personal space, or some combination of the two.

Smell becomes the main means of social interaction

Social interaction. Cats don't shake hands, hug each other or exchange phone numbers when they meet, but they do relate to each other, reading tiny social details through their extraordinary sense of smell.Submit clues. They can rub or hit their heads to release pheromones and sniff through anatomical parts to find clues about each other. They can also examine each other's urine and feces. All these sniffers provide a wealth of information, including whether the new person is a friend or a foe, what they like to eat, how they feel, how healthy they are, and whether they are a man or a woman.

The sense of smell exists to find food

A cat's nose can indicate the presence of a nearby mouse, prompting an immediate predatory response. Kittens are born with their eyes closed and use her pheromone secretions to identify their mother and available nipples. In fact, the information is so detailed that it allows each partner to match his favorite nipples, reducing mealtime competition.

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