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by Drublic on February 7th, 2007

Drublic

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What is the purpose of whiskers on a dog or cat?

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Answers. 7 helpful answers below.

  • by SaraZita on February 7th, 2007

    SaraZita

    They use them for both measure and feeling.

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  • by Universe Of Life on February 7th, 2007

    Universe Of Life

    To judge width

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  • by staffie on February 7th, 2007

    staffie

    Also known as "tactile hairs" or vibrissae, whiskers are the long, thick, flexible hairs on a cat's face. These hairs are located in horizontal rows on the whisker pad, the puffy area between the top corners of your cat's mouth and the outer edges of his nose. Whiskers, like hair and nails, do fall out and are replaced. But whiskers are different from the cat's body hair in a few ways:
    Whiskers should never be cut or trimmed (we'll discuss why later).
    Whiskers are two to three times thicker than the cat's hair.
    Whiskers are rooted very deep in the cat's face, in an area rich in nerves and blood vessels.
    In addition to having the long tactile hairs on their cheeks, cats also have shorter ones above their eyebrows, on their chin and on the back of their front legs. Since we are most familiar with facial whiskers, let's look at what they are good for:
    Navigation
    Mood indication
    Measuring an opening
    www.howstuffworks.com

    this site will tell you more

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  • by MewseJuice on February 7th, 2007

    MewseJuice

    They usually stick out to around the width of their body, and can use them to tell if they will fit through a small gap.

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  • by Anonymous on March 21st, 2009

    Anonymous

    Also if you have an iPhone, you'll be able to pull up any cat you want using your GPS! It's really cool. you will get full specs of any of your local neighborhood cats and dogs! You'll know if they've been in trouble with the law, if they are out on parole, or are wanted by any law enforcement agencys! Their whiskers are better known as GSN, Global Satalite Navigators!

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  • by May on March 21st, 2009

    May

    They use their whiskers to help them feel out things in the dark and other hard places to feel around.

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  • by timpoisneat on November 10th, 2008

    timpoisneat

    Whiskers on a dog or cat can be likened to the antennae of an insect. Whiskers help guide the animal by transmogrifying beta waves in the air into cognitive data used in mapping the location of the animal. They also serve to receive delta waves in the reception of fear transmissions from surrounding animals. But the most important function of the whisker is to subconsciously frighten and subdue predators. Whiskers focus on specific genus' of animals, taking on the visual appearance of the predator's worst fears, emotionally injecting them with nightmares that can last up to a week. Only evolution can explain this phenomenon.

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