A cat’s sense of smell is as powerful as a dog’s, but used for different purposes
How important is scent to cats? More than you might think. No one has ever been silly enough to try to put them to work finding people or substances by scent, but cats have a keen sense of smell and rely on it heavily. Unlike dogs, however, who have developed an array of scent-related careers to help people, cats use their sense of smell for more personal endeavors: to establish territory and determine where they are, to identify each other and to whet their appetites.
Odor is crucial to a cat’s feeling of comfort in the home. Cats use scent to mark territory and make a place their own. Their sebaceous glands — located primarily on the lips, chin, between the eyes and ears, at the base of the tail and around the anus — secrete sebum, an oily substance that is odorless to us but contains scent markers that are meaningful to cats. Urine and feces also contain these scent markers.
When you see your cat rubbing his face against your body or an object such as the refrigerator (where the food comes from!), he’s laying down an invisible but scented token of possession, a signal to other cats that this person, place, or thing belongs to him. Urine marking is a more odorous — and less-pleasing to-humans — means of accomplishing the same thing.
Cats also use scent to identify and greet each other. They begin by sniffing faces and then rears. Think of it as the feline version of a handshake, and don’t be offended when your cat presents his butt for you to sniff. He’s just being polite — in a catly sort of way.
Odor is also strongly linked to appetite. A cat who has lost her sense of smell will be uninterested in food. That’s why feline nasal infections can be more serious than they might seem. Cats can quickly go downhill if they refuse to eat. Entice them by offering stinky canned food or warming their food before giving it to them. (Stir it well to make sure there aren’t any hot spots that could burn the mouth.)
Cats also have an uncommon ability to “taste” scents with the help of some unusual anatomical features. They have two small air passages known as the nasopalatine ducts, which are located in the roof of the mouth just behind the upper front teeth (incisors). Air in the mouth passes through the ducts, which lead to the vomeronasal, or Jacobson’s, organ in the nasal cavity.
If you’ve ever noticed your cat give something a good sniff, wrinkle his nose and open his mouth with the lips slightly retracted, you’re seeing the vomeronasal organ in action. That expression, as if he’s smelling something unpleasant, is called the flehmen response. It occurs when cats encounter urine or other odors that provide information to them. Nerves run between the VNO and the area of the brain that controls sexual behavior, and scientists believe that the flehmen response helps the cat to draw in and sample more of the odor. It’s seen primarily in male cats and may assist them in determining a female’s reproductive status. Females are more likely to display the flehmen response when sniffing their newborn kittens. Any cat may flehmen in response to the scent of catnip, the urine of other cats or to any unfamiliar smell.
Like humans, cats find certain odors to be repulsive, but their idea of what smells bad isn’t the same as ours. Orange peel and mothballs are on their “do not sniff” list.
Which odors do cats love best? Catnip, of course, and, strangely, garlic and onion. And if you are lucky, your cat’s favorite scent is you.
— Kim Campbell Thornton and Dr. Marty Becker
Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker. Pet Connection is produced by veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker, journalist Kim Campbell Thornton, and dog trainer/behavior consultant Mikkel Becker.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Pet Connection: Odor is crucial to a cat's feeling of comfort at home
