Dog noses are the perfect shape for identifying smell.

Human noses aren't just structurally different from dogs — they're also functionally distinct.

Due to the shape of dog noses, the way they intake air and expel breath encourages a more developed sense of smell. It's actually the latter effect that enables more new odor molecules to be absorbed on the next breath — and it's the same reason why dogs get so ridiculously close to things they're smelling.

As a dog expels breath from their nose, an air current is created that actually kicks up more new odor molecules. As the dog takes its next breath, it's absorbing the molecules that it kicked up when expelling its last breath. Through this system, dogs are not only sniffing but actively enabling "better" sniffs.