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Dogs have a great sense of smell - this is a well-known fact that most people know about, but many people do not even suspect how interesting the dogs nose is, which they breathe, regulate body temperature and explore all these interesting smells that are around us. Like us, dogs have two nostrils, but their nostrils are much more complex and interesting to help them get as many molecules of all kinds of odors as possible.
Independent movements
This is one of the funnest facts about dog nose. Dogs can move their nostrils independently of each other. Yes, they can only move one nostril. When they do this, they are evaluating the scent and possibly trying to determine its direction.
Breathe or sniff?
Dogs can move their nostrils independently, but can either breathe or sniff.
This is why when you give a dog that is breathing with an open mouth a treat on its hand, it closes its mouth and sniffs. When she does this, she temporarily "turns off" her normal breathing-cooling process and "switches" to the ability to process odor to study it, ”says Stanley Coren in his book What Do Dogs Think?
It also explains why scent-handling service dogs become less reliable in hot conditions.
According to research by Irit Gazit and Joseph Terkel, a decrease in the effectiveness of their sense of smell was seen in service dogs when they overheated. This can obviously be a problem for search and rescue teams, but it can be remedied by keeping the dogs cool and giving them time to acclimatize in hot weather.
Role of the right nostril
It is known that in dogs, like in humans, the brain is divided into two halves, which leads to a certain preference for the side, which is why there are right-handers and left-handers. We know that dogs also have a paw preference, but more interestingly, it looks like they also have a nostril preference, and they use them differently depending on what they are sniffing.
In a recent study by Siniscalchi M. and colleagues, dogs were given 6 different odors to smell and their reactions to those odors were assessed. The smells were: the smell of food, the smell of a bitch in heat, the smell of lemon, the smell of a cotton swab, the smell of veterinarian sweat and the smell of adrenaline (whatever that smell).
The dogs were allowed to examine these odors several times and were closely observed. It was noticed that when they examined these scents for the first time, they used their right nostril. After a while, they switched to the left nostril. The only exception to this rule was the smell of veterinarian sweat and the smell of adrenaline, which they apparently categorized as disgusting.
On closer inspection, this "uneven nasal displacement" is not surprising because the projection of the olfactory system is ipsilateral (meaning that it affects the same side of the body) and therefore the right nostril is known to connect to the right side of the brain and vice versa.
It is known from previous research that the right hemisphere of the brain is the side that tends to deal with novelty and gather information about emotions associated with the fight-or-flight response, while the left hemisphere is responsible for routine exploration, proximity behavior, and attractiveness.
Interesting crevices
Why do dogs have slits in the sides of their nostrils? Believe it or not, even these gaps play an important role. The front part of the nostril is responsible for inhaling air, while the task of these slits on the sides is to remove air during exhalation. As air flows out of the side slots, it creates swirls that help in picking up new odors by creating a stream of air on top of them.
But these crevices have another important function.
Thermal sensors
Among the many interesting facts about dog nostrils, this one deserves a place of honor.
Mother Nature did not allow newborn puppies to see and hear, but she was certainly generous in the case of smell. Not only do puppies smell at birth and even before birth, their noses appear to be equipped with special heat sensors.
Have you ever wondered how a newborn puppy is able to crawl towards its mother? Mother's scent may play a role, but Jingv Zotterman of the Swedish Research Council discovered another surprising phenomenon. Puppies are equipped with special heat receptors that are located around these side slits and nasal openings.
These receptors have been found to be capable of detecting infrared radiation from warm objects. “Evolution has provided an additional source of sensory information to help the puppy at this critical time, in the form of special receptors in the nose,” says Stanley Coren.
Source: Five Fascinating Facts About Dog Nostrils
Independent movements
This is one of the funnest facts about dog nose. Dogs can move their nostrils independently of each other. Yes, they can only move one nostril. When they do this, they are evaluating the scent and possibly trying to determine its direction.
Breathe or sniff?
Dogs can move their nostrils independently, but can either breathe or sniff.
This is why when you give a dog that is breathing with an open mouth a treat on its hand, it closes its mouth and sniffs. When she does this, she temporarily "turns off" her normal breathing-cooling process and "switches" to the ability to process odor to study it, ”says Stanley Coren in his book What Do Dogs Think?
It also explains why scent-handling service dogs become less reliable in hot conditions.
According to research by Irit Gazit and Joseph Terkel, a decrease in the effectiveness of their sense of smell was seen in service dogs when they overheated. This can obviously be a problem for search and rescue teams, but it can be remedied by keeping the dogs cool and giving them time to acclimatize in hot weather.
Role of the right nostril
It is known that in dogs, like in humans, the brain is divided into two halves, which leads to a certain preference for the side, which is why there are right-handers and left-handers. We know that dogs also have a paw preference, but more interestingly, it looks like they also have a nostril preference, and they use them differently depending on what they are sniffing.
In a recent study by Siniscalchi M. and colleagues, dogs were given 6 different odors to smell and their reactions to those odors were assessed. The smells were: the smell of food, the smell of a bitch in heat, the smell of lemon, the smell of a cotton swab, the smell of veterinarian sweat and the smell of adrenaline (whatever that smell).
The dogs were allowed to examine these odors several times and were closely observed. It was noticed that when they examined these scents for the first time, they used their right nostril. After a while, they switched to the left nostril. The only exception to this rule was the smell of veterinarian sweat and the smell of adrenaline, which they apparently categorized as disgusting.
On closer inspection, this "uneven nasal displacement" is not surprising because the projection of the olfactory system is ipsilateral (meaning that it affects the same side of the body) and therefore the right nostril is known to connect to the right side of the brain and vice versa.
It is known from previous research that the right hemisphere of the brain is the side that tends to deal with novelty and gather information about emotions associated with the fight-or-flight response, while the left hemisphere is responsible for routine exploration, proximity behavior, and attractiveness.
Interesting crevices
Why do dogs have slits in the sides of their nostrils? Believe it or not, even these gaps play an important role. The front part of the nostril is responsible for inhaling air, while the task of these slits on the sides is to remove air during exhalation. As air flows out of the side slots, it creates swirls that help in picking up new odors by creating a stream of air on top of them.
But these crevices have another important function.
Thermal sensors
Among the many interesting facts about dog nostrils, this one deserves a place of honor.
Mother Nature did not allow newborn puppies to see and hear, but she was certainly generous in the case of smell. Not only do puppies smell at birth and even before birth, their noses appear to be equipped with special heat sensors.
Have you ever wondered how a newborn puppy is able to crawl towards its mother? Mother's scent may play a role, but Jingv Zotterman of the Swedish Research Council discovered another surprising phenomenon. Puppies are equipped with special heat receptors that are located around these side slits and nasal openings.
These receptors have been found to be capable of detecting infrared radiation from warm objects. “Evolution has provided an additional source of sensory information to help the puppy at this critical time, in the form of special receptors in the nose,” says Stanley Coren.
Source: Five Fascinating Facts About Dog Nostrils
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Ирина Кузьмина"Огромное спасибо ЛИСу! Наш дог Добрыня прошёл обучение и теперь общаться и гулять с ним одно удовольствие - это воспитанный и почти всегда владеющий собой "юноша". Без Василия и его команды мы не смогли…"