Curious Kids Every Day: A Daily Educational Podcast
Sep 27, 2026 · 8 min · 6 segments
In this episode, we learn that an animal's whiskers help sense touch, nearby objects, tiny air movements, and the space around their faces! **Curious Kids Every Day is a daily, interactive podcast…
Josh TaylorHost
Hey, have you ever noticed the whiskers that cats have? [upbeat music] [cat meowing] If they graze your hand or arm, those whiskers can tickle.
[laughs] Have you noticed that dogs have those same whiskers, too? [upbeat music] [dog barking] I've always kind of thought about them like they're a mustache, but I know that's not right.
Is there a reason for their whiskers? What's the point? I was thinking about this today because I got an email from a curious kid named Laney.
Laney wondered, "Why do cats and dogs have whiskers?" [cat meowing] [dog barking] The scientific term for an animal's whiskers is vibrissa.
[upbeat music] [cat meowing] Cats and dogs use whiskers to gather information about the world around them.
A regular hair mostly just grows out of the skin, but a whisker is thicker and rooted deeper in the skin than regular fur.
So if a whisker bumps against a chair leg or brushes against your arm or feels air moving nearby, the animal's brain is getting information about what it is that is around them.
That is especially helpful because cats and dogs don't see the world exactly the way we do.
For example, cats are very good at noticing movement, and they can see really well in dim light.
But objects that are very close to a cat's face can be harder for them to focus on.
[cat purring] And dogs use whiskers, too, though often in a slightly different way.
[upbeat music] You've probably noticed that dogs use their noses a lot, right? They have a very good sense of smell to know what's going on around them, but their whiskers help as well.
[whimsical music] If something brushes those whiskers, it can help a dog reacts quickly.
And dogs have whiskers above the eyes so that they have some warning if something [laughs] is really close to their face.
Hey, have you ever noticed the whiskers that cats have? [upbeat music] [cat meowing] If they graze your hand or arm, those whiskers can tickle.
[laughs] Have you noticed that dogs have those same whiskers, too? [upbeat music] [dog barking] I've always kind of thought about them like they're a mustache, but I know that's not right.
Is there a reason for their whiskers? What's the point? I was thinking about this today because I got an email from a curious kid named Laney.
Laney wondered, "Why do cats and dogs have whiskers?" [cat meowing] [dog barking] The scientific term for an animal's whiskers is vibrissa.
[upbeat music] [cat meowing] Cats and dogs use whiskers to gather information about the world around them.
A regular hair mostly just grows out of the skin, but a whisker is thicker and rooted deeper in the skin than regular fur.
So if a whisker bumps against a chair leg or brushes against your arm or feels air moving nearby, the animal's brain is getting information about what it is that is around them.
That is especially helpful because cats and dogs don't see the world exactly the way we do.
For example, cats are very good at noticing movement, and they can see really well in dim light.
But objects that are very close to a cat's face can be harder for them to focus on.
[cat purring] And dogs use whiskers, too, though often in a slightly different way.
[upbeat music] You've probably noticed that dogs use their noses a lot, right? They have a very good sense of smell to know what's going on around them, but their whiskers help as well.
[whimsical music] If something brushes those whiskers, it can help a dog reacts quickly.
And dogs have whiskers above the eyes so that they have some warning if something [laughs] is really close to their face.
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