Wet Nose, Warm Heart

It’s commonly thought that you can tell a dog is healthy if the nose is cold and wet, but this isn’t necessarily true. A cold, wet nose doesn’t necessarily indicate good health. Conversely, a warm, dry nose doesn’t automatically mean a dog is sick. A healthy dog’s nose is often warm and dry after sleep. For some dogs, a dry, chapped nose is normal, especially with age. The temperature of your dog’s nose is a poor gauge of overall body temperature. If your dog has a warm nose but is alert and acting normally, he’s probably in perfectly fine health. But if your dog is listless, acting painful, or has a poor appetite, then it’s time to call the vet—regardless of how the nose feels!

That said, why are dogs’ noses typically cold and wet? Dr. Stanley Coren, author of What Dogs Know,¹ offers a biblical explanation. As the tale goes, Noah used dogs to patrol his Ark and keep the animals safe. One day, while sniffing around, the dogs discovered a coin-sized hole in the ark. One dog quickly plugged the leak with his nose while the other ran for help. Noah patched the hole in time and all hands were saved. God bestowed the dog with a cold, wet nose as a reward for his quick thinking.

All legend aside, the exact reason for the cold wet nose is up for debate. Here are a few proposed explanations:

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