Curious1
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One story claims that dogs have wet noses as a gift from God for saving Noah’s ark from sinking. One of the dogs found a hole in ark and put his nose in it to keep the water from getting in. The dog’s mate went to alert Noah about the hole so it could be repaired. For their courage, God gave dogs cold, wet noses as a measure of their good health.
That story is probably not true, but it is more fun to tell than just saying dog’s noses are wet because they run and they get licked a lot. In addition, a cold, wet nose is not always a sign of good health. Neither is a warm, dry nose a sign that a dog is sick. It is a good indicator of health, however, but it is not the final say all, tell all.
It is true that dogs have wet noses primarily because they lick them a lot, but what purpose does a wet nose serve? Some scientists believe that wet noses play important roles in the biology of dogs. First of all, dogs don’t sweat. They cool down primarily through panting. At the same time, a wet nose acts as a secondary cooling agent. Any moisture on exposed skin can cool the skin. It doesn’t have to be sweat. In addition, a wet nose may help a dog’s sense of smell. Molecules give off more of a scent if they are slightly moist. When a dog breathes those molecules in through their noses, the molecules pick up some of the moisture from the nose to help them pick up the scent.
Posted 5335 day ago
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