Can Cats Smell Cremated Ashes [And Do Ashes From Cremation Smell?]

May the souls of our lost ones rest in perfect peace, Amen!

Many individuals find solace in keeping all or a piece of their lost one’s remains at home. It helps keep the memory of your dependable buddy close.

In the case of a fire outbreak which results in the death of people, there are dog’s trained solely for the purpose of sniffing out remains. However, these days, there have been a lot of arguments that cat can do the job better. 

These arguments have therefore resulted in the topic I’d like to address for today. 

Can Cats Smell Cremated Ashes and Do Ashes From Cremation Smell?

It’ll be insensitive of us to think that animals have no emotions. Just like humans, the feel everything. Let me give you guys an instance. 

A long time ago, about 2 years, I had a dog name brown. Brown was an incredible dog and as much as the internet considered dogs and cats enemies, brown got along really well with Mitch, my cat. 

Along the line, I lost Brown to cancer, it was really a sad moment for everyone who knew him, my cat inclusive. I cremated his body to have his presence felt at home and the moment I brought the ashes back, Mitch yelped and I could notice a few drops of tears. 

It was fascinating to watch; because how did she know that were brown’s ashes? 

So, yes Not only could Mitch smell his ashes, she could feel his aura and presence in the room. Cats can small cremated ashes!

While a lot of you may not agree with this, it’s the honest truth. In this post, I’ll give an insight on the whole theory and possibly how it works. 

Do Ashes From Cremation Smell?

Honesty, coming from my own observation, NO. 

I honestly never perceived any smell from Brown’s ashes, it’s almost like dust, but with not smell attached to it. I’m guessing I think this way because we humans do not have heightened sense of smell like dogs and cats. 

Some people however say otherwise when answering this question. Most people say that ashes from cremation smell like a very slight mеtаllіс оdor, or a very slight ѕсеnt of incense. Emphasis on “very slight” so we don’t think that ashes from cremation and incense smell alike. 

What Do Cremation Ashes Smell Like?

Cremated remains are a white or grеу in shading аnd rеѕеmblе the tеxturе of ѕаnd.

These days, people go a little bit extra when it comes to cremating remains. I know a friend who added purple tint to the cremated remains of her late daughter because that was her favorite color. 

It was really thoughtful. 

Some people do more than just adding color, however the actual look of cremated ashes is either white or grey. Anything other than that was probably not cremated properly or left to burn in the cremating process. 

Do Cats Have a Better Sense of Smell Than Dogs?

Yet again, another controversial question. 

For years now, people have believed that Dogs have a better sense of smell when compared to cats and I couldn’t agree anymore. 

A lot of us are biased in nature and would most likely not agree to this, but it’s simply the honest truth. I know you’re a dog lover, but let’s give credit to whom credit is due- or whatever it is they say, LOL. 

The reason for this is because dogs have fewer sense receptors when compared to cats. Cats have a shockingly better feeling of smell and can recognize contrasts between bigger assortments of aromas. They do a great job at distinguishing between smells. 

Can Cats Smell Another Cat’s Ashes?

If mitch could perceive that of Brown, how much more her own specie and kind. Yes I do believe that cat’s can smell other cat’s ashes. 

But I’ve come to understand that sometimes, they are able to perceive cremated ashes because of the relationship they had with that pet or individual when they were alive. 

So I’m actually skeptical about agreeing to Mitch smelling another cat’s cremated ashes she never knew existed or even came across. 

I don’t think that were possible. 

But, if there were to ever be a case where she lost her cat buddy, I can vouch that she’ll be able to smell the cremated ashes in a second. 

Can Cats Smell Human Cremated Ashes?

Again, I like to base my finding based on my personal experiences. I don’t have a human cremated ash in my home so I had to go digging to bring answers. 

Yet again, my hypotheses are correct. Human cremated ashes are odorless, I couldn’t perceive those that were in my family house back In the days. 

According to my research, cats will be able to identify and perceive human cremated ashes if they were trained to do so, or if they had a close relationship with the deceased person in question. 

Apart from that, because of the whole process the body undergoes to be cremated, cats are not able to small human cremated ashes. 

But on the contrary fire service teams go extra length to train dogs and cat to be able to smell human ashes in case of a huge fire. Nobody should have to lose a loved one twice. It’s the least they could offer if they were not able to stop the fire on time. 

Conclusion

When a реrѕоn is rеаdу tо brіng lоvеd оnе’ѕ remains іntо thе hоmе, unforeseen еmоtіоnѕ mіght emerge. Kееріng сrеmаіnѕ аt home can light clashing fееlіngѕ оf solace in the sensation of misfortune. 

This emotion is also felt by your pets that have one way or another built a relationship with the deceased person. 

I am in strong support of keeping cremated remains of loved ones at home. It makes me feel like they’re still here even though I can’t see or talk to them. It is a form of closure. 

References

  1. Littlethings
  2. oneworldmemorials