We’re sure you’ve found yourself telling your dog to get that cold, wet nose out of your personal space at some point! But have you ever wondered, ‘why do dogs have wet noses?
The primary reason dogs have a wet nose is because dogs secrete mucus that aids their sense of smell.
But there are several other reasons.
Dogs sweat through their paws and noses, which helps them cool down.
And, as a dog owner, you know that they also lick their noses a lot.
Why?
Since they’re constantly using their noses to root around, they clean them off with their tongue.
But there’s a bonus: the mucus on a dog’s nose absorbs scent chemicals, which a dog can then sample in the olfactory glands on the roof of his mouth.
Five Fascinating Dog Nose Facts
We’ve all seen our dog’s nose in action, sniffing out scents we’d never detect as humans. Your dog’s sense of smell is stronger than his sense of sight or hearing. So, what do these superior sniffers have that we don’t?
- Scientists have found that dogs’ olfactory abilities are anywhere from 10,000 to 100,000 times more powerful than humans’. Dogs have roughly 50 smell receptors compared to our measly one.
- A dog’s nose can breathe air in and out at the same time.
- Dogs have a special scent-detecting organ, called the vomeronasal organ that humans don’t have. This organ helps canines detect pheromones secreted by other animals.
- Each dog’s nose print is unique, like each human’s fingerprint.
- Flat-faced, short-nosed dogs, such as the Boxer, Pekingese, and Pug, have fewer scent-detecting cells than dogs with longer snouts, like Bloodhounds and German Shepherds.
Now you know and more.
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