# Why do dogs have those cheek warts?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dogs-have-those-cheek-warts/572736
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [February 26, 2011, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dogs-have-those-cheek-warts/572736 "2011-02-26T19:30:55Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@phantom\_lamb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phantom_lamb)
#### Post date: [February 26, 2011, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dogs-have-those-cheek-warts/572736/1 "2011-02-26T19:30:55Z")
I’ve noticed all (most?) dogs have these warts on the side of each cheek and one under the chin. But what are they? Do they have a name? More importantly, what is their _purpose_? Just curious, because other mammals don’t seem to have them.
---
### Author:  [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)
#### Post date: [February 26, 2011, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dogs-have-those-cheek-warts/572736/2 "2011-02-26T19:33:35Z")
> **[Dog moles](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=432292)**
>
> I was petting roomie’s dog when I noticed the mole on her cheek behind her mouth. It has some longer hairs sticking out of it. It struck me that I’ve seen moles in the same location on many dogs of many breeds. What’s up with that?
---
### Author:  [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)
#### Post date: [February 26, 2011, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dogs-have-those-cheek-warts/572736/3 "2011-02-26T19:44:30Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#):
>
> [Dog moles - Factual Questions - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=432292)
Just another in the long line of examples that there is _nothing_ that hasn’t been covered here on the Dope. 🙂
---
### Author:  [@phantom\_lamb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phantom_lamb)
#### Post date: [February 26, 2011, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dogs-have-those-cheek-warts/572736/4 "2011-02-26T19:51:52Z")
Hmm so… “sensing organ”? Could be a _bit_ more elaborate but I shall accept this answer into my library of knowlegde 😃
I’m assuming then that it’s tactile thing and is more sensitive to touch than the area around it.
---
### Author:  [@Heyoka13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heyoka13)
#### Post date: [February 26, 2011, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dogs-have-those-cheek-warts/572736/5 "2011-02-26T19:54:50Z")
> [@Fiddle\_Peghead](#):
>
> Just another in the long line of examples that there is _nothing_ that hasn’t been covered here on the Dope. 🙂
This site is indeed amazing.
Has a rep system ever been considered? I always hated the idea until I posted at a site that encouraged high positive and high negative reps. It turned out to be great fun.
---
### Author:  [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)
#### Post date: [February 26, 2011, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dogs-have-those-cheek-warts/572736/6 "2011-02-26T21:18:20Z")
> [@phantom\_lamb](#):
>
> Hmm so… “sensing organ”? Could be a _bit_ more elaborate but I shall accept this answer into my library of knowlegde 😃
> I’m assuming then that it’s tactile thing and is more sensitive to touch than the area around it.
Those bumps usually indicate the base of several [vibrissae](http://articles.directorym.com/Your_Dogs_Secret_Surveillance-a918713.html), found in many mammals.
> [@](#):
>
> Vibrissae are typically found in clumps, although the arrangement can differ depending on the particular individual. According to Carol Foil, ACVD, a veterinary dermatologist consultant with the Veterinary Information Network in Davis, Calif., “The little beauty marks are mounds of nerves and other connections that make the whiskers function as tactile (feeling) hairs. Dogs have one mound of compound follicles, but they can have more than one whisker in the mound.”
---
### Author:  [@phantom\_lamb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phantom_lamb)
#### Post date: [February 26, 2011, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dogs-have-those-cheek-warts/572736/7 "2011-02-26T21:31:39Z")
Hey, thanks **Colibri** that was quite informative.
I had no idea that you aren’t supposed to touch those things. I’m going to have to apologize to my dog for not being more careful when petting those sensitive areas for the past 12 years. :smack: