All dog owners have their pet’s nose smashed against their face or other parts of the body. Most often a dog’s nose feels cold and thin, but at other times it is hot and dry. Most pet owners, at some point, wonder whether their dog’s nose should be wet or dry. Researchers have recently examined the noses of animals and determined that it is normal for a dog’s nose to be cold and wet, but it is also common for a dog to have a hot and dry nose.
Anna Bálint, a researcher at the University of Tવts L લોrend in Budapest, Hungary, studies the behavior of animals. He says that when a dog falls asleep, his nose usually gets hot and dry. When dogs wake up, they lick their noses and get cold and wet. The researchers wanted to know if the dog’s nose had an advantage in getting cold.
One hypothesis was that a cold nose could help the dog regulate body temperature, but the help is so low that it is unlikely to make a meaningful contribution to thermal regulation. The research team measured the nasal temperatures of many animals, including the noses of horses, dogs and moose. The team has determined that the nose tips of dogs and carnivores are generally cooler than those of vegetarians.
The next step was to see if the cold nose gave carnivores any advantage in the wild. The team conducted experiments with behavior and brain in mind to see if a cold nose is made for a good heat check. The team successfully trained three dogs to select a hot object with the same temperature as possible prey on an object at room temperature.
Results Suggested dogs can detect weak thermal radiation from a distance when hunting. In another brain-focused investigation, the scientists presented 13 dogs trained to lie still in a functioning MRI scanner with hot water and an insulating door. The response of the dogs’ brains was more responsive to the warmth of the surface, to the cooling of the surface than to the closing of the door.
In particular, the left lobe of the brain is highlighted in these tests, which is the side that processes responses to food and is involved in predatory activity in many vertebrates. Researchers believe that dogs and other cold-nosed animals may use the sense of finding heat with other senses while hunting.
