Dog_sense_of_smell | TriviaQuestions.online

⭐ In the context of dogs, their exceptional sensory capabilities are most directly linked to what historical process?

Dogs' enhanced senses, particularly smell and hearing, are a result of humans intentionally breeding wolves for specific traits over thousands of years, a process known as selective breeding.

⭐ Core Definition: Dog sense of smell

The dog sense of smell is the most powerful sense of this species, the olfactory system of canines being much more complex and developed than that of humans. It is believed to be up to 10 million times as sensitive as a human's in specialized breeds. Dogs have roughly forty times more smell-sensitive receptors than humans, ranging from about 125 million to nearly 300 million in some dog breeds, such as bloodhounds. These receptors are spread over an area about the size of a pocket handkerchief (compared to 5 million over an area the size of a postage stamp for humans). Dogs' sense of smell also includes the use of the vomeronasal organ, which is used primarily for social interactions.

The dog has mobile nostrils that help it determine the direction of the scent. Unlike humans, dogs do not need to fill up their lungs as they continuously bring odors into their noses in bursts of 3–7 sniffs. Dog noses have a bony structure inside that humans do not have, which allows the air that has been sniffed to pass over a bony shelf to which odor molecules adhere. The air above this shelf is not washed out when the dog breathes normally, so the scent molecules accumulate in the nasal chambers and the scent builds with intensity, allowing the dog to detect the faintest of odors and can even detect emotions.

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👉 Dog sense of smell in the context of Dog

The dog (Canis familiaris or Canis lupus familiaris) is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. Dogs were the first species to be domesticated over 14,000 years ago, before the development of agriculture. Due to their long association with humans, dogs have gained the ability to thrive on a starch-rich diet that would be inadequate for other canids.

Dogs have been bred for desired behaviors, sensory capabilities, and physical attributes. Dog breeds vary widely in shape, size, and color. They have the same number of bones (with the exception of the tail), powerful jaws that house around 42 teeth, and well-developed senses of smell, hearing, and sight. Compared to humans, dogs possess a superior sense of smell and hearing, but inferior visual acuity. Dogs perform many roles for humans, such as hunting, herding, pulling loads, protection, companionship, therapy, aiding disabled people, and assisting police and the military.

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