Cross Breeds

Why do cats make that funny face when they smell another cat on your clothing?

They stick out their jaws and show their bottom teeth....Im sure its a territorial thing, but why that face??Anyone?

Public Comments

1. It's called the Flehman Response and all cats do it. They say it's because they have sensors on the tongue, so they are in a sense, absorbing the scent. You can find out more about it here: http://cats.about.com/cs/felineanatomy/a/catsnose_scent.htm Cats aren't the only animals that do it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flehmen
2. They make that face because they are actually "tasteing" the smell..They can get the scent spores on their gums, tongue and the roof of their mouth and "taste " it as well as smell it. This helps them recognize a new cat or strange smell. It has a strange name Flemming.. Horses do it too when they smell horse poop from a strange animal
3. Cats have a sensory gland on their palate and when they open their mouths it is so they can smell whatever it is even better than with their noses..
4. When a cat curls back its upper lip and looks like it’s sneering, it has just discovered an interesting, usually intense odor and smells it more deeply. Called “flehming,” it is drawing the odors into an organ (Jacobson’s organ), in the roof of its mouth.
5. A cat's ability to smell is greatly improved when it opens its mouth much like the way you describe. It's not a territorial thing. It is your cat's way of trying to better identify where you've been.