August gives us all the facts on cats' tongues and why they’re so rough!

For once, it has been a nice cooler than usual summer here in Central NY and our air conditioners aren’t on full blast. Daphne has been out some but not a lot and one thing I don’t need to worry about is her overheating. The lack of high heat and humidity helps along with her amazing tongue that can help keep her cool. How so? Let’s dive into some interesting facts about sandpaper texture cat tongues and all the things it can do. 

Lots to do- It is crazy to think about but there are around 475 tastebuds on a cat's tongue yet none, yes none of them, can taste anything sweet. No sweet tooth problems here! In contrast, humans have just under 10k and dogs under 2k. 

Most importantly yet a fun fact- Why is a cat tongue rough like sandpaper?  Papaille is made up of keratin ( think fingernails) and they are backwards and U shaped all over the top of the tongue. Since these are backwards, that is why cats have a very difficult time or impossible time extracting items out of their mouth. I have heard countless stories of cats who ate ribbon or thread and someone had to pull it out or take the cat to the vet.  Because the papaille face that direction, things get stuck very easily in one direction. Think also about hairballs! 

Opposite of dogs- If you look closely, a dog’s tongue is smooth and not that rough sandpaper feel if you have ever had a dog lick your face!  However, you may notice that a dog does not groom themselves as a cat will do ( some cats groom 5 times a day or more!) and dogs have moved past the need to hunt as much as cats still do.  The papaille can assist the cat in removing meat off bones and scoop up water when they drink. The tongue goes down into the water and ‘grabs’ it then in a split second, the water goes down the hatch! 

No bath required- Cats love to groom and bathe themselves and are very clean animals. When grooming, the saliva is placed onto the fur all the way down to their skin. The saliva is almost a detergent in and of itself and helps the cat get all the dirt and grime away. Upon covering itself in saliva, the air dries it and helps keep the body cool. 

The bad news-  Once the saliva dries, it becomes dander which is what causes allergens.  It is not the fur people are allergic to but the dander.  Once dander dries, it is super tiny and sticks to clothes and fiber and floats around the air. Fel d1 is a protein that cats make and this is the allergen. With technology and science, there are advances being made in food to control this protein and help lower the allergy causing dander. 

Think pink-  A healthy pink tongue is what we want to see so watch for color changes as this can be a sign of disease or poor health.  Any changes should be directed to your veterinarian. 


Enjoy those sandpaper kisses and laugh when your cat leaves its tongue sticking out! 
Photo is Daphne Louise with a big yawn after a busy afternoon playing outside!