Our taste buds are very sensitive. They can either bring us joy or disgust depending on what we’re sampling. What’s even more interesting is that depending on what area of the tongue we use, the stronger or weaker the taste of certain flavors we experience. But have you ever wondered if our pets have the same strong taste buds that we have? Can they taste salty and sweet, sour or savory? We’ve done some research and found some answers.
Why do we have taste buds?
Taste buds evolved as a survival function. As Psychology Today found, “some substances provided food, some gave warning, and some could cause damage or even kill. As animals evolved, the taste system became more specialized and sophisticated. Sensations of pleasure and disgust provided by taste serve a survival function” (source). Our taste buds help all of us know if foods are poisonous, edible, or inedible. That’s why we know instantly if something tastes terrible then we probably shouldn’t eat it.
There are four basic taste sensations:
- Sweet
- Salty
- Sour
- Bitter
Early research showed that dogs do have some of the same kind of chemicals that trigger similar taste sensations. While humans have the most sensitive tastes, with around 9000 buds, dogs come in second with around 1700 buds and cats are far behind having only 470 buds. And the strongest tastes among all of us is the taste for salt.
Psychology Today continues to explain, “Humans, and many other mammals, have a strong taste response to salt. We seek it out and enjoy it on our food. Pretzels, potato chips, and popcorn, for example, are snack foods that are usually liberally dosed with salt. Salt is needed to balance our diet and there is not much of it to be found in vegetables and grains. Dogs, however, are primarily carnivores and in the wild, most of their food is meat. Because of the high sodium content in meat, the wild ancestors of dogs already had a sufficient amount of salt in their diet and did not develop our highly tuned salt receptors and the strong craving for salt.”
However, sweet is a different flavor that isn’t as noticeable to our pets. We may have a sweet tooth, but our pets see it differently. Dogs tend to notice the sweet taste more and enjoy it, but cats have virtually no way of sensing this taste.
Our pets can taste bitter due to the evolution of taste buds letting them know what not to eat. That’s why anti-chewing and anti-scratching sprays you can purchase are bitter flavored. These help your pets know that they should not be chewing, clawing, or otherwise messing with an object although I have noticed most do not work. Our pets know bitter is a taste best avoided, so it can act as a great deterrent for undesired behaviors.
Does your pet seem to have a preference for flavors or do they just eat anything and everything? Let us know what your pet likes in the comments below!