It's an age-old conundrum. While no one animal is better than the other – contrary to what many argue – each of them possesses unique traits that make them different. Dogs have an excellent sense of smell; Whereas, cats may fall from a great height unscathed.
But which animal has a better hearing system? The answer may surprise you.
Cats are significantly more sensitive to hearing than dogs and humans (as well as many other mammals). A healthy cat's ability to hear is a biological marvel. According to an article published in Animal Planet, a cat's ear is like a delicate satellite dish that can be rotated up to 180 degrees in order to catch the faintest squeak, chirp, or rustle. The article goes on to explain that "a cat's external auricle, or ear, can be rotated up to 180 degrees in order to catch and recognize even the faintest squeak, chirp, or rustle." ”
In humans, the ear canal is very short, with only 25 cm long. However, both canines and felines have a long ear canal that "curves almost 90 degrees on its way to the deeper parts of the ear."
Although humans and cats have similar hearing ranges (at relatively low ports), cats are able to hear sounds well above the human hearing range, up to 16 octaves, 1 octave above the range for dogs. In fact, a healthy cat can even tell where to make a sound at a distance of 1 meter, helping to locate its prey. They can also "hear sounds very far away – four to five times farther than humans." ”
The cat's ears are a great advantage, but despite this, there is still a very vulnerable part. The cat's external auditory canal is fragile, and for this reason, otitis externa is very common.
Otitis externa is inflammation of the external auditory canal and is one of the most common reasons a pet is brought to the vet. In general, cats tend to have fewer ear problems than dogs, but otitis externa can affect cats or dogs of any age and can be very painful.
There are many causes of inflammation in pets otitis externa, including allergic** diseases, parasites, food allergies, autoimmune diseases, and foreign bodies in the ear. The ear canal with otitis externa can also become a breeding ground for bacterial or yeast infections – moist and warm conditions in the ear canal also help these microorganisms thrive – and it is very common to find animals with otitis externa to have ear infections at the same time.
Symptoms of ear infection or inflammation may include scratching your ears, foul-smelling ears, shaking your head, discharge (pus, water) from your ears, and redness and swelling of your ears. If any of these symptoms occur, it is recommended that you contact your veterinarian before the problem worsens.