04/07/2025
Dogs noses are fascinating organs having dual functions. I love watching (& listening) to them hard at work engaging the brain in tons of activity! 🧠💭
When I was studying for one of my courses that covered the dog brain and how it works, it showed a visual of a dog having an MRI carried out on its brain whilst sniffing various scent. During sniffing and processing of scent molecules it triggers all the neuro-transmitters in the brain to fire up making them look like a firework display going off in all different directions! There is so much information in scent and familiar scent triggers memories (good & bad!). Just like when we hear certain songs playing, we remember where we were or who we were with, or what we were doing when we first heard the song play! It triggers a memory! Certain smells can also trigger memories for humans too although much less than music evoked autobiographical memories!
Ten minutes of sniffing is the equivalent to roughly 30 minutes of exercise! Mental stimulation is very tiring and has so many benefits for your dog. 😴
[Frankie was sniffing scent for a good 4-5 minutes before I decided to video her nose in action...then she caught me, but I could tell she was almost done! I never want to disturb this pleasurable experience].