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You may have seen this before.
You open a packet of food your cat usually enjoys… but this time it sniffs its bowl for a few seconds and walks away.
And yet, at other times, the moment you open a tin of wet food, your cat comes running from the other side of the room.
Why does this happen?
Because for a cat, eating starts long before the first bite. It starts with the nose.
Smell matters more than taste
For humans, taste is the main factor when it comes to choosing what to eat.
For cats, it's a little different.
Before they even take a bite, they rely on their sense of smell to assess their food. And their noses are incredibly powerful! They have tens of millions of scent receptors—far more than we do—allowing them to detect a wide range of odors that are completely imperceptible to us.
In other words, while we simply smell "cat food," they perceive a rich and complex olfactory signature.
Why some cats seem fussy
Many cat owners assume their cat is being "picky" when it suddenly refuses a food it normally enjoys, or that there's something wrong with the food.
In reality, there's often a perfectly reasonable explanation.
A change in the ingredients can certainly be one reason—but it's far from the only one.
Cats can detect incredibly subtle differences in smell: a freshly opened pouch, food that's been left out for several hours, or the distinctive aroma of a specific meat or fish in a 100% natural recipe. To them, these differences are far from insignificant—and they can be enough to influence whether a food appeals to them.
Even the temperature of a cat's food can affect how it perceives its aroma. In the wild, a cat's prey is naturally warm. That's precisely why many cats turn their noses up at food straight from the refrigerator, preferring it at room temperature—or better yet, slightly warmed.
This becomes especially important in senior cats. As they age, their sense of smell can become less sensitive. Serving wet food slightly warmed helps release more aromas, stimulating their sense of smell and encouraging them to eat more readily.
This isn't a sudden loss of smell, but a natural part of aging. As their olfactory receptors gradually become less efficient, cats may perceive aromas less intensely. And as you've seen, because smell plays such a central role in how cats experience food, this change can affect their interest in certain meals. Foods with richer, more pronounced aromas are often more appealing to older cats.
Older cats and changing smell
You may have noticed that a cat with a cold or a respiratory infection sometimes loses its appetite. It's not just because it isn't feeling well.
When a cat can't smell properly, food becomes much less appealing.
It's something we experience too: when we have a bad cold and a blocked nose, meals often seem to have much less flavor.
In cats, however, the connection between smell and appetite is even stronger.
Understanding your cat’s behaviour
Understanding the importance of a cat's sense of smell also helps us better understand our feline companions.
It explains why they sometimes take the time to carefully sniff their bowl before starting to eat.
Why they may refuse a food they happily enjoyed the day before.
Or why offering a variety of recipes can help maintain their interest in their meals.
For a cat, eating is not just about hunger. It is an experience that engages all of their senses. And it all begins with their nose.
