Why is my cat sniffing my face? This is a cat mystery that is gradually being revealed by cat experts or those experienced in raising this mysterious animal. Now more and more who like these cute animals, their uniqueness and mystery will be revealed along with the experience experienced by those who are experts in maintaining them.
Cats are tame animals and are familiar with humans. Even they can always play with us without getting bored. Cats are expressive animals and they always show us what they like. If we pay attention to the cat, it always follows us where we go if there is something we want. Even under certain conditions, sometimes cats sniff our faces, and we don’t know what their purpose is.
We will open this mystery here, why the cat sniffs your face, what exactly does this cute animal want.
Why Does My Cat Sniff My Face
Cats are animals with an extraordinary sense of smell. It offers information about the environment, prey or about food. So, why is your cat sniffing your face?
When a cat sniffs your face, don’t panic and it’s harmless. Sniffing your face can sometimes be a sign of “greeting” from your cat. The cat sometimes kisses you, your breath and he begins to build a bond with you. Why should you be afraid or drive him away. This is a good sign that your cat is being liked. Get to know him better.
So why do cats sniff your face? Let’s find out more about this. Note the following points.
Feline Sense Of Smell
A tool owned by a cat that is very sophisticated in smelling. So, we need to understand what it means rather than a cat sniffing. Very strong smell, whether he smells something is in humans.
We know that dogs are animals with a very sophisticated sense of smell even more sophisticated than cats. But cats smell much better than humans. It can be said that a cat’s sense of smell is 14 times better than that of humans. If humans have 5 million receptors for smell, then cats have 45 million to 80 million olfactory receptors. This shows that cats are much better at detecting scents than humans.
So, there are many possible reasons why a cat sniffs your face. In human life, we do not only rely on smell, but we use the senses of touch, hearing, touch, and taste in navigating the environment around us. But cats are more dominant than their incredible sense of smell. but what exactly is the purpose of this fairly sophisticated olfactory system in cats.
Communication
In living this life, we rely on all our senses to make it easier for us to do everything to achieve our goals. Cats are not like that, they use physical attributes and they manage to get the food they want. They can avoid predators that are dangerous to them and can interact with other cats.
Cats are very unique, they have a unique way of expressing their moods as well as their needs in humans and animals. So, cat body language is an important thing that must be mastered and understood by cat owners. By studying certain expressions or by the sound of a cat meowing we can find out what their behavior means. Whether the cat is angry, satisfied, happy, or stressed.
Cats have many ways to communicate, even with smelling certain smells being their way of knowing things.
Keep in mind that cats have scent glands that release “pheromones”. A study says “many aspects and behavior of cats are influenced by chemical signals”. Chemical cues seem to be important in reducing stress in cats, and potentially good in providing comfort to them.
The pads on their paws, forehead, cheeks, lips and pelvic tail have scent glands and there are 2 small anal glands on the sides of their rectum.
Certain scents are a way for cats to mark their territory and can mark foreign cats and their own colonies. They can also build intimacy and help other cats to be more friendly and familiar. Cats use their scent and ours to create intimacy, for example rubbing their head against our feet and so on.
Well, until here you may find the answer that smell is something that is very important for cats in navigating their environment.
Why Does the Cat Sniff Our Face?
So, it’s not wrong or even weird if you ask “why is my cat sniffing my face.” One thing is certain that this behavior is the cat’s attempt to communicate with humans.
What exactly do cats want to tell us or is there something they want to learn from us. Or a cat sniffs our faces at the stench of our foul breath. Well, how do we behave when a cat sniffs at our face, do we have to sniff them too.
Well, why is my cat sniffing my face, to answer this question. There are at least 6 possibilities. Let’s dive deeper into what it means for cats to sniff our faces.
1. To Say Hello
A cat that sniffs his face into your face is sometimes a form of greeting you. It can be by sniffing his face or by speaking near you. After a while the cat will leave to continue the day. It’s like meeting two people greeting each other, cats are like that too.
You don’t need to throw him out, it’s a cat that wants to be close to you. They greet you as their employer to then start their day with more enthusiasm.
As we mentioned earlier, cats have glands on their faces, so when they meet other cats, they sometimes kiss each other, and that’s a form of greeting from them. So, the cat greets his friends including his master in various ways. He recognizes our scent and greets us by kissing us, licking or rubbing his body against our feet.
2. Because You Share A Bond
Kissing is the main way for cats to recognize things, including the smell of their owner. They also recognize other cats by the smell of the cat. His nose can sense nearby predators, for spoiled food. Just like the mother of a cat, they also use their sense of smell to identify all their kittens.
So, kissing for cats is a form of affection and build closeness with their children, or with other cats. Most cats rub or kiss their owners, and find the owner’s scent.
So, cats recognize and build intimacy by licking or kissing their owners.
3. To Wake You Up
Most cats make noises in the morning when they find their empty food bowl or wake their owner at an invitation to play with them.
Some cats sometimes meow alone or near us to make sure we are awake. There is also a quiet one, he only approached the owner who was sleeping but just kept quiet, usually this cat is more cunning. Usually this quiet cat will kiss his master to wake him up and he can get food.
So, why is your cat sniffing your face? Probably because he is in need of you to wake up and provide them with necessities such as food.
4. To Get A Whiff Of Your Scent
Surprising isn’t it! This is because cats recognize their owners or anyone else by smelling them, not by their appearance. When your cat sniffs you sometimes you don’t feel anything, maybe it’s because you’re sleeping or busy with something else.
Cats sniff more subtly than dogs. That’s why sometimes you don’t find the moment when the cat inhales your scent.
Changes in your scent sometimes make your cat have to smell you many times to find your original scent. sometimes you replace soap, or replace fragrance and this means your cat has to kiss you several times to get to know you better.
5. To Reduce Their Stress
One of the reasons why a cat sniffs your face is to smell your scent and then it can be while meeting its owner. sometimes he also sniffs the kittens to make sure it’s them, this will reduce and relieve stress on the cat.
Kissing the owner can relieve stress on the cat. By doing this the cat will feel more comfortable knowing that he is with his master.
6. To Make Sure You’re Ok
When your cat sniffs in front of you, it could be a form of cat affection for you. He wants to make sure that you are there and are doing well.
Sometimes cats also know through their smell that you are sick. This is what the cat does in its own way to understand your condition.
Why Do Cats Sniff Your Mouth?
This is a cat behavior that may seem strange at first glance, but it really isn’t because for some cats, sniffing our faces isn’t enough for the cat to know who we are. So, he sniffs our mouths. This is the behavior of some cats to get to know their own smell better.
Sometimes cats want to know how spicy you smell, the smell of curry, or the minty smell of your breath. So for a cat, smell is the main medium for him to get to know you. If you’ve been out for hours or days, your cat just needs to sniff you in the face or in your mouth.
There is also an opinion that when a cat smells our breath, this is to find out whether we have a cold or illness. So, it is a cat technique to ensure that its master is healthy. But if you have just eaten grilled fish, then I can confirm that the cat is sniffing your mouth because of the smell of the grilled fish you eat.
