Let’s talk a little about SCENT HOUNDS.
What is a Scent Hound? How is a Scent Hound defined?
Generally, a Scent Hound is a dog that mainly “hunts by scent”.
One might say, that for Scent Hounds, it’s all about the “nose”.
Scent hound noses, are by their anatomy’s design, keenly able
to smell & track a scent. There are several reasons for their,
outstanding ability to scent, some are:
* They have larger noses & nasal passages;
* Some scent breed hounds have longer ears & looser skin
(the ears & skin help sweep the scent to the nose);
* Some scent breed hounds are lower to the ground
(so they are lower to the scent);
* But mainly their noses have hundreds of millions of cells to
process scents.
Compare special scent cells of noses:
- human nose 6,000,000 cells
- dachshund nose 125,000,000 cells
- bloodhound nose, 200,000,000 + cells
There is much more on the subject of scent hounds & their
unique noses & abilities. If you are interested in
learning more, here are some references:
+ Book – Scent and the Scenting Dog, by William G. Syrotuck
+ Book – Search & Rescue Dogs, by ARDA American Rescue Dog Assoc.
+ Book – On the Trail, by Jan Tweedie
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