# Do animals generally prefer salty and sweet tastes, like humans? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 28, 2020, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703 "2020-04-28T02:05:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/1 "2020-04-28T02:05:40Z")
The answer will be, of course, “it depends on the animal.” But do most animals like sweet and salty (and dislike sour and bitter) like most people? (Cows, for instance, seem to just like plain old grass, although that might just be that they have no option for anything sweet or salty in their diet, except for the salt cubes they lick.) ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/2 "2020-04-28T02:28:07Z")
Actually, horses will eat “Sweet feed” (a sweetened grain product) until it kills them. I would assume that Cows are the same. I know our dogs love sweet things, but they will eat pretty much anything with gusto, and I haven’t tried an experiment to see which they would choose first. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/3 "2020-04-28T02:42:14Z")
Cows will also happily eat poison oak, with no ill effects. I assume other ruminants do likewise. To be sure, I don’t know what poison oak tastes like, having never sampled it myself. Anybody? ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/4 "2020-04-28T03:08:36Z")
Hunters have long used salt blocks to attract deer. Mrs. J. is fond enough of salt that I’ve considered getting one for her as an Xmas present. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/5 "2020-04-28T03:09:43Z")
Dogs will eat poop they say. I can’t say if they _prefer_ it. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/6 "2020-04-28T03:17:02Z")
Most animals like salt, but only herbivores and omnivores like sweet. Cats, for instance, don’t care about sugar. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/7 "2020-04-28T03:23:28Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > Dogs will eat poop they say. I can’t say if they _prefer_ it. They do. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/8 "2020-04-28T03:32:26Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Most animals like salt, but only herbivores and omnivores like sweet. Cats, for instance, don’t care about sugar. Herbivores have a particular affinity for salt, because plant foods contain very little sodium, which is a necessary nutrient. Most herbivores will eat fruit if they can get it. Most carnivores will actually eat some fruit as well, the exception being cats, which are close to being pure carnivores. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/9 "2020-04-28T04:34:51Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Most animals like salt, but only herbivores and omnivores like sweet. Cats, for instance, don’t care about sugar. It goes even further - it appears all extant pinnipeds lack both sweet and umami receptors. Dolphins lack those and possibly bitter as well. All of those aquatic lineages seem to have a greatly reduced ability to taste in general, with relatively few taste buds. Which considering most swallow their prey whole, kinda makes sense - not a lot of opportunity for tasting going on when everything goes down in one gulp. So you wouldn’t want to be reincarnated as a Bottlenose Dolphin if you’re a gourmand - you’d be in for a pretty bland existence, relatively speaking. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/10 "2020-04-28T04:39:18Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Herbivores have a particular affinity for salt, because plant foods contain very little sodium, which is a necessary nutrient. In the Sierra Nevada mountains, a couple of times I’ve had a marmot watch me pee, then come and eat the grass that I’ve peed on. A bit disconcerting until you realize why they are watching you. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/11 "2020-04-28T04:57:12Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Most animals like salt, but only herbivores and omnivores like sweet. Cats, for instance, don’t care about sugar. One of my cats would disagree with this. He will lick syrup off a plate. He will lick a donut. He has tried to eat some really weird things (for a cat), like cucumbers and bananas. The cucumber did not work out well for him, but he tried. He really likes to knock a cookie to the floor, so it breaks, and then he eats the pieces. We have to guard our treats! I have only known one other cat like this. That one liked bread, he liked cereal, and left alone with either (or a bag of chocolate chip cookies) he would tear into the bag to get it. Usually, if you have cats, things like this are safe, unless they look like they could be toys. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/12 "2020-04-28T05:20:14Z")
I have a cat who’s a sweet fiend and his favorite treat is key lime pie. He’ll take your arm off for it. Also loves sweet fruit yogurt (strawberry, peach and mango, pretty much in that order of preference) but turns up his nose at plain. Loves oatmeal cookies. Loves whipped cream but only if it’s sweetened–plain is apparently no good. He’s diabetic though, so he doesn’t get his yummy treats any more and is very upset about it. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/13 "2020-04-28T06:00:09Z")
> [@SmartAleq](#): > > I have a cat who’s a sweet fiend and his favorite treat is key lime pie. He’ll take your arm off for it. Also loves sweet fruit yogurt (strawberry, peach and mango, pretty much in that order of preference) but turns up his nose at plain. Loves oatmeal cookies. Loves whipped cream but only if it’s sweetened–plain is apparently no good. He’s diabetic though, so he doesn’t get his yummy treats any more and is very upset about it. I was told that my cat, because he is orange, is at higher risk for cat diabetes. I wonder if the way he eats is related to his coat color? His brother has touches of the same color but no sweets for that one. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/14 "2020-04-28T07:48:18Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > One of my cats would disagree with this. [Cats can’t taste sweet](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/strange-but-true-cats-cannot-taste-sweets/). (No ALF jokes!) ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/15 "2020-04-28T09:18:29Z")
I notice it says that your dessert is safe from MOST cats. Maybe he’s part Cookie Monster. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/16 "2020-04-28T12:54:39Z")
Any statement about cat behavior must be tempered with the statement that cats are insane. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/17 "2020-04-28T13:06:59Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > It goes even further - it appears all extant pinnipeds lack both sweet and umami receptors. Dolphins lack those and possibly bitter as well. All of those aquatic lineages seem to have a greatly reduced ability to taste in general, with relatively few taste buds. Which considering most swallow their prey whole, kinda makes sense - not a lot of opportunity for tasting going on when everything goes down in one gulp. > > So you wouldn’t want to be reincarnated as a Bottlenose Dolphin if you’re a gourmand - you’d be in for a pretty bland existence, relatively speaking. I would guess any animal living in the oceans would not taste much considering every time they open their mouth they get a bunch of salty sea water. It was probably no advantage, in terms of evolution, to have a strong sense of taste. For land animals, I am not sure salt is preferred, or if it is craved biologically. The examples of the pee-seeking marmot, salt licks for cattle and deer, butterflies and some bees seeking sweat - for animals living in areas without abundant natural salt, they will seek it out as a necessity to live. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/18 "2020-04-28T13:24:27Z")
What precisely do you think the difference is between preferring and craving biologically? ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/19 "2020-04-28T15:11:09Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > What precisely do you think the difference is between preferring and craving biologically? To me preferring is somewhat an option - you may prefer coffee over tea, but the choice is not consequential to you staying alive. Craving something sometimes means your body is telling you it’s needs something to survive, such as water, where you don’t really have another option. At least that is my unscientific take on it. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/20 "2020-04-28T15:12:26Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > To be sure, I don’t know what poison oak tastes like, having never sampled it myself. Anybody? I think we’re far enough along that I can hazard a guess that it would be quite spicy! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703.md?page=2)