With almost 40 times more odor-sensitive cells in their noses than we have in ours, cats have it all over us when it comes to the sense of smell. They can also hear more frequencies than we (and most other mammals) can. But when it comes to the sense of taste, we humans have got the goods. While cats have fewer than 500 taste buds on their tongues, we have about 9,000. They can’t even really taste sweet food. Some people swear their pet has a sweet tooth, but it’s probably the fat in many sweet foods that cats are after.
One thing cats can taste is bitter ingredients, and they really do not like them. It’s believed that their sensitivity to bitter tastes warns them against toxic foods.
