How Cologne Can Help
Animals are driven by their sense of smell far more than humans. And, indeed, just the tiniest whiff of pheromone can deliver a powerful message. So seems to be the case with not just Calvin Klein’s Obsession, but several different perfumes and colognes.
A 2010 study at the Bronx Zoo showed that big cats are attracted to certain synthetic odors. Scents tested included Chanel No. 5, Jovan Musk, and CK Obsession–but Obsession for Men was the clear winner. The favorite kept cheetahs intrigued for a full 11.1 minutes, almost a minute more than the runner-up, L’Air du Temps.
Two years later, researchers captured their first man-eating tiger using the cologne.
The reason they like it so much? Civetone. The popular perfume ingredient is actually a pheromone that’s secreted by the small wild cat (from a gland which is, unfortunately, located near its anus). The scent of the ingredient is referred to as a fecal floral–according to perfumer Mandy Aftel, “[It] smells like poop, really. Poop. It’s funk.”
When big cats catch a whiff, they go crazy.
Hope For T-1
Indian authorities hope that by using the cologne as bait, they will be able to lure the tiger (and her two cubs) out of the forest for a trap-and-relocate effort. However, odds aren’t in their favor.

For months now, authorities have been trying to trap the family of tigers, using animals such as goats and horses as bait. The New York Times has noted that the efforts have been in vain, as T-1 “rips into them” and eats them quickly before vanishing.
Let’s hope that for the sake of all involved, the cologne does the trick.
Tiger lovers, rejoice! Endangered Bengal Tigers in Nepal have doubled their numbers in recent years!