08/17/2019
Behold the perfect scent detecting machine nature ever produced.
Experts have said that the working ability of a Bloodhound is 75 percent nature and 25 percent nurture, so let's look at what nature has given this dog. Large, ultrasensitive set of scent membranes in the dog's nose allows him or her to distinguish smells at least a thousand times better than humans. In fact, researchers have estimated that a Bloodhound’s nose has approximately 230 million olfactory cells, or “scent receptors” — 40 times the number in humans. Whereas our olfactory center is the size of a postage stamp, a Bloodhound's is large as a handkerchief, among the largest in all canines.
When one of these dogs sniffs a scent object (something the subject has touched), air rushes through the dog's nasal cavity and odors lodge in the mucus membranes and bombard the scent receptors. Chemical signals are then sent to the olfactory bulb (the part of the brain that analyzes smells) and an “odor image” is created that for the dog which is far more detailed than a photograph is for we humans. The dog uses the odor image as a reference which helps her locate the subject’s trail which is usually loaded with the smells of sweat, breath,shed skin, maybe perfume, shampoo or the such.
As the dog puts his nose to the ground, those magnificent wrinkles around his face help trap scent particles, and those fabulous ears that drag on the ground collect odors and sweep them into the dog's nostrils. A long neck and strong, muscular shoulders slope into a strong back allowing the dog to trail or track for miles. In fact, Bloodhounds have been known to stick to a trail for over 130 miles. Later, we'll talk about some of the amazing dogs who have worked in law enforcement.
Image: Bloodhound study by viverrinus
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