A Dog’s sense of taste is far inferior to their human’s – finally we have one sense that ranks higher. We recently talked about the difference in a human’s sense of smell and sound versus a dog and they definitely win on both counts hands down, but we win when it comes to sense of taste. I don’t know about you but I’m happy tasting the cheesecake better.
Even though dogs have only 20 percent of the number of taste buds a human has they have taste receptors for things that are missing from the human collection. Just like people, they taste sweet, salty, bitter, and sour. In addition, their taste receptors pick up fats, and certain chemicals in meats.. They’re able to distinguish different types of meats and can have preferences for one type over another. Research conducted in the 1970’s concluded that they prefer beef. Pork is second, with lamb coming in third, and chicken in the final spot. Winston’s Taste of the Wild food offers Bison, Boar, and Salmon – they all pass with flying colors.
Some researchers claim that dogs also have taste buds that detect water. They’re said to be located on the tip of hip tongue.
As you know taste, is enhanced by the sense of smell. Dogs have such a superior sense of smell, it does help make up for their lack of taste receptors. I’ve noticed when I begin feeding a three week old litter of puppies, it’s frequently a challenge to get them to even try the wet puppy food. However, when I blend a tiny bit of canned puppy food in with the gruel they dive right in. I only add enough to entice their sense of smell and that’s all the bribery required.
Dog food manufactures have paid attention to the research that has been done on the subject, a lot of the more expensive foods use protein sources and fish oil for the omega fatty acids that invite the dog’s nose and thereby encourage eating. Of course, then they need mouth wash.
Dogs rank higher than us with their sense of smell, their hearing, and their eyesight, but we would enjoy the hamburger more – so there.
You must be logged in to post a comment.