Can Cats Taste Sweet?

Cats can't taste sweet things, it's an evolutionary trait that all members of the cat family have lost, and some species of monkey can't taste artificial sweeteners, but do taste natural sugars.Humans have about 8 to 10 thousand taste buds on their tongue, that usually only last about 10 to 14 days before being replaced. Other mammals have lots of taste buds, mostly on their tongue and pallet.

Herbivores like cows have around 25 thousand, omnivores like pigs around 15 thousand and carnivores generally have the fewest.

Birds have far fewer taste buds than mammals, chickens only have around 30. But parrots have several hundred, which is more than most other birds, and cockatiels can even discriminate between salt, sugar and acids.

Read more about taste buds and how they work.