Among the public perception of our pet’s scent detection, most people believe that canines have a superior sense of smell than their feline counterparts. While this belief may be half-true, cats can actually outshine many dogs when it comes to scent receptors as well as their ability to distinguish differing smells. Below we define a dog’s sense of smell, a cat’s sense of smell, and, ultimately, which one of our furry friends has the superior sniffing ability.

A Dog’s Sense of Smell

Given how there’s so many breeds and sizes of dogs in the world, canines have a huge variety of averaging scent receptors, otherwise known as olfactory receptors, in their noses. At roughly sixty-times better than humans, certain breeds, such as Bloodhounds, Basset Hounds, Beagles, German Shepherd’s, and more, can pack up to a whopping 300-million olfactory receptors in their nose. However, not all dogs are armed with a super-powered nose as studies show that the average dog has roughly 100-million olfactory receptors, which is still much more than our mere 5-million receptors. While dogs generally use their scent detection to track prey and locate food, cats utilize their noses in a much more versatile and complex way.

A Cat’s Sense of Smell

When it comes to a sheer numbers game, dogs have cats beat as the average feline has between 80-and-150-million olfactory receptors compared to a dog’s average of 100-to-300-million. However, cats have certain specific abilitieswhich allows them to use their sense of smell in a much more different way than dogs. Cats, for example, have the unique Vomeronasal Organ on the roof of their mouths which allows them to detect specific pheromones, mark their territory, communicate with other cats, and heightens their overall sense of smell when stalking prey. In general, while dogs may have a larger quantity of scent receptors, cats can detect a higher quality of smells as they can distinguish between scents more accurately. 

Cats Vs. Dogs: Who Has the Superior Sniffer?

The comparison between our two pet’s sense of smell has no clear consensus given how each species employs their nose in different ways. While dogs are blessed with a super-charged proboscis that allows them to sniff out food from miles away, cats utilize their nose to read their living environment, communicate with others, and, yes, sniff out food. Each of these animals have a much superior smelling capability than us humans, although, comparing their sense of smell will result in different conclusions depending on the unique pet, breed, and what you believe to be most important when it comes to smell.

Providing Optimal Health for Your Pet

Making sure our pets are getting the proper nutritional ingredients will help maintain their noses natural ability to smell at a superior level. Dr. Bill’s Ultimate Fitness & Health products are specifically formulated to help our dogs and cats during life’s most stressful periods such as weaning, growth, training, performance, reproduction, lactation, and boarding. Dr. Bill’s Ultimate Fitness & Health provides proactive nutritional support for:

• Active Weight Control
• Eye, Nose, Heart, & Brain Health
• Performance Enhancement
• Endurance & Stamina
• Muscle Tone & Strength

Achieve complete daily wellness with Dr. Bill’s Ultimate Fitness & Health, which provides improved health and longevity, is biologically appropriate, and is made from natural ingredients to help your canine and feline friends live longer, healthier lives.