You know that your dog is an outstanding companion but are you aware that because of an excellent scenting ability your pet can be an efficient detector too? The sense of smell is the most sensitive sense of man’s best friends. This sense coupled with the excellent hearing ability is what makes these animals excel as hunters.

Owners of hunting dogs that greatly depend on the tracking abilities of the pet would be aware of the power of the dog’s nose. Breeds of hounds can find a wounded animal by following a track that has gone cold not only for hours but for several days. This is how powerful dogs noses are. Is this the reason why dogs are seen constantly sniffing? Dog owners are already aware of the ordinary and the not so ordinary habits of the pet. Nevertheless, a dog owner would still wonder at the dog’s inclination to sniff.

Dogs sniff the ground, the grasses, the food and even the feces. Dog not only sniff humans but the backside of other dogs too. You can’t help but think what lures the pet to sniff. We know that dogs are energetic and inquisitive animals but because they don’t have hands their noses will be used to satisfy their desire to know everything about their surroundings.

Dogs hunt their prey but they are hunted by their predators as well. The nose is one efficient survival tool as not only can it point to the location of a prey but it can also disclose the presence of predators. Simply by sniffing the air, the dog in the wild will be aware of the presence of danger.

Dogs use an excellent method to communicate with each other very well. We know how dogs efficiently use different movements of their body to transmit a message to other dogs. However, it cannot be doubted that the dog’s nose and consequently sniffing, have played an important role in dog to dog communication. Have you noticed how dogs would sniff each other’s rear end? Nature has gifted dogs with a smell distinctly their own to be used as an identification not unlike humans thumb print. Dogs are noticed to sniff a lot in spite of the fact that they have a scenting ability that is much superior to what humans have. A rescue dog would sniff for people buried in rubble and in avalanches. Studies have also verified the dog’s ability to identify people with certain types of cancer. Now we understand why our dogs sniff a lot.