For us, our eyes are the most important sense organ. For our dogs, the nose is the most important. We can hardly imagine how well our dogs can smell.

Our nose has about 5 million olfactory cells. That's a lot, don't you think?

On average, dogs have 200 million olfactory cells. This means that dogs can smell up to 60 times better than we can. There are of course differences between the different breeds. The Bloodhound has the best sense of smell with around 300 million olfactory cells, whereas short-nosed breeds only have around 125 olfactory cells.

The olfactory center in the dog's brain is also about 40 times larger than ours. In the dog's brain, it takes up about 10%, while our brain only gives it 1%. So it's no wonder that dogs are way ahead of us when it comes to their sense of smell.

Special olfactory performance: The Jacobson organ

But the dog can go one step further and has something else up its sleeve… the so-called Jacobson’s or vomeronasal organ:

This is a special olfactory organ that is located in the dog's palate and primarily detects pheromones. The olfactory information is transmitted directly to the brain in this way... a kind of olfactory fast lane. The perceived pheromones give your dog information about the gender, hormone status and individual fitness of the other dog and are used for social interaction between dogs.

Licking, drooling, chattering teeth

Have you ever noticed your dog sniffing a spot intensely, licking it, drooling or even chattering his teeth? Then you know that the Jacobson's organ is active at that moment.

For example, dogs lick urine to get more information about another dog. Since the smells are first bound in the saliva, dogs often drool and chatter their teeth. This means that the dog can not only smell the smell, but also taste it.

dog's nose -  stereo smelling

As if all of this wasn't fascinating enough, the dog's nose can do even more: Both nostrils can move independently of each other and perceive different smells on the right and left and evaluate them separately.

Can dogs smell emotions?

We can't fool our dogs. Since emotions release neurotransmitters, dogs can also smell when we are stressed or anxious, for example. No matter how good your acting skills are.

Can dogs smell time?

You think that sounds crazy? Dogs  can not read a clock, but have  but still a sense of time based on various factors. For example, if you leave your dog alone at home: As a human, you constantly lose odor particles. If you now leave the house, these odor particles gradually lose their odor intensity. Your dog can differentiate the odor intensities very precisely and use this to determine how much time has already passed. If you regularly leave the house at similar intervals,  it is possible that  Your dog is already expecting your return because he associates the smell intensity with this time  link  can.

And another example shows how fantastic our four-legged friends' sense of smell is: tracking dogs that are not set at the start of a trail, but in the middle of it, can determine the right direction within a very short time. So they can  differentiate the age of odor particles with incredible precision.

Nosework – Job and Hobby for the Dog

Because of their superior sense of smell, dogs are known to be excellent tracking, rescue and drug detection dogs. Appropriately trained dogs are even able to warn diabetics of hypoglycemia and epileptics of an impending seizure.

But even for our dogs without a job, nose work makes them happy and tired. Activities such as mantrailing, tracking or search games are therefore an ideal, meaningful activity for many dogs.

Why is a dog’s nose wet?

"If a dog has a cold and wet nose, it is healthy": Everyone has probably heard this saying. However, it is not always true. The moisture in the nose allows smells to be absorbed and passed on better. However, after extensive nose work, the dog's nose is often dry. Therefore, it is important to provide your dog with sufficient water, especially during nose work.

Did you know?

In contrast to eyes and ears, the sense of smell hardly diminishes with age, as the olfactory cells renew themselves throughout life. Nose work is therefore also ideal for senior dogs.