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Do Cats Like Sweet Things & Can They Taste It? Vet-Approved Facts & Safety Tips

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By Nicole Cosgrove

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Reviewed & Fact-Checked By

Dr. Paola Cuevas

MVZ (Veterinarian)

The information is current and up-to-date in accordance with the latest veterinarian research.

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Most people know that humans have five basic tastes: sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and the difficult-to-define umami flavor. But cats, with fewer than 500 taste buds compared to the 9,000 of humans, experience different tastes. It is believed that cats can taste sour, bitter, salty, and umami, like humans. But they cannot taste sweet and may be able to taste fatty.

While cats cannot taste sweet, many owners report that their cats are attracted to sweet things, so how can this be? Read on to find out more about cats’ tastes and whether they really do like sweet things.

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Cat Tastes

Cat tongue, cat taste receptors
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Taste buds are essentially tiny little papillae on the tongue and these receptors detect food and send messages to the brain about how food tastes. The more tastebuds, the more taste sensations are sent to the brain and the more complex food tastes. Humans, on average, have 9,000 to 10,000 taste buds. Dogs, by comparison, have just over 1,500 taste buds, and cats have just 470 taste buds. In the case of cats, their taste receptors are not spread over their tongue, but rather are concentrated in two small protuberances called “foliate organs.” Besides the fact that cats have fewer taste receptors, the reason that cats cannot taste sweet is related to a defect in one of the genes that encode for the sweet receptor. With a defective (Tas1r3) pseudogene, cats’ ability to taste sweets is basically deactivated.

Despite having so few tastebuds, at least compared to humans, cats can still taste the differences between sour, bitter, salty, and umami flavors. However, while cats can enjoy these different tastes, they cannot taste sweet things.

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Why Do Cats Like Sweets?

Because cats cannot taste sweet, it means that they neither like nor dislike sweet flavors. They simply can’t taste it. As such, if your cat comes running when you’re eating vanilla ice cream or opening a candy, it isn’t because they crave the sweet flavor on offer.

The Rustle of the Wrapper

Cats are inquisitive animals that like to know what is going on at all times—unless they’re asleep, of course. If your cat comes running when it hears the rustle of a sweet wrapper being opened, it is likely just responding to the noise. It wants to know what is inside the wrapper.

Mistaken Identity

Another reason your cat might pester for the sweet you have is that they look, smell, or sound like something else. The rustling wrapper could sound similar to the noise of their treats being unwrapped. The tasty morsel you’re tucking into might look like their favorite food. The mint in the chocolate that you’re eating may have an interesting smell, similar to that of catnip, which is a member of the mint family. Remember that both chocolate and mint are toxic to cats, so please do not let your cat try your chocolate mint candy.

Other Ingredients

While cats cannot taste sweet things, they can taste fatty foods and salty foods. And some cats do crave these flavors. The ice cream you’re eating contains fat, and a lot of sweets are made using lard which, once you strip away the sweet flavoring, has an umami, meaty flavor to it. It could be that your cat recognizes these other flavors and wants these, rather than the sweet flavor that attracted you.

a black polydactyl cat licking its mouth
Image By: Casey Elise Christopher, Shutterstock

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Sweet Ingredients to Completely Avoid

Cats are obligate carnivores, which means that they should be getting all of their nutrition from meat and animal-based ingredients. While natural sugar is not toxic to cats, their bodies cannot digest or use it properly, and too much sugar can cause problems like vomiting and diarrhea. Therefore, even if your cat does like the taste of something in your sweets, you should avoid offering them to your feline buddy.

Other sweet ingredients that should be avoided include:
  • Xylitol – Xylitol is an artificial sweetener that might be toxic to cats. Avoid any artificial sweeteners. While natural sugar is not good for your cat, it is safer than artificial alternatives.
  • Chocolate – Chocolate is toxic to dogs and cats and dark chocolate is the worst of all. It can cause stomach problems and may lead to abnormal heart rate and even death.
  • Grapes – It isn’t clear exactly what in grapes causes problems for cats but it is known that grapes can lead to kidney failure. This is another ingredient that is unsafe for dogs, too, and because raisins are essentially just dried grapes, they should also be avoided.
  • Caffeine – Caffeine is a very similar ingredient to chocolate and it leads to the same problems if ingested in cats. Make sure your cat doesn’t drink your coffee while your back is turned. While it is unlikely, your feline friend might be attracted to the milk and may be intrigued by what you enjoy so much.

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Conclusion

Cats have far fewer tastebuds than humans, which means that they have a different range of tastes. They also have a defective gene that deactivates the sweet taste receptor. Cats cannot taste sweet, which means if your cat is pestering you to eat the chocolate you’re consuming or drink the sweet drink you have, they are likely after one of the other ingredients it contains or are simply intrigued by what you are enjoying so much.

However, sugar isn’t good for cats so you should avoid feeding your cat sweet treats. Even worse for your cat are the artificial alternatives, especially xylitol, which can cause seizures and death, so these should not be considered an alternative.


Featured Image Credit: jplenio, Pixabay

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