# Do animals generally prefer salty and sweet tastes, like humans?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703>\
**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:** 4\
**Page:** 3

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**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 29, 2020, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/41 "2020-04-29T19:24:25Z")

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From extensive observational evidence, I hypothesize that a large percentage of cats taste buds are for “USB charging cable.”

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**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/42 "2020-04-29T20:16:23Z")

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> [@Chronos](#):
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> Most animals like salt, but only herbivores and omnivores like sweet. Cats, for instance, don’t care about sugar.

I thought the reasons people find cats dead in a pool of antifreeze under their car is that they love the sweet taste of ethylene glycol.

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**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/43 "2020-04-29T21:15:43Z")

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> [@RioRico](#):
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> SOUR: One reportedly catches more flies with sugar than with vinegar.

They say that, but commercial and homemade fruit fly traps are baited with vinegar.

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**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-animals-generally-prefer-salty-and-sweet-tastes-like-humans/852703/44 "2020-04-29T21:43:36Z")

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I had an iguana that was like a garbage disposal, he would eat pizza, cereal with milk, freaking anything.

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