Kitten Sense of Smell

Question
I adopted a three-month old male kitten (Taz) that now has just turned one year.  He was feral, and I adopted him in a "community rescue effort."  He is absolutely perfect in every way except he becomes skittish around strangers (but this is getting much better).  All of a sudden his is OVERLY INTERESTED in every smell. Every time I come in from outside (even if I just went to get the mail), he has to completely smell me over, crawling on me to smell every inch.  This is really unusual, as he typically doesn't even usually want to sit in your lap or be on you unless we're in the bed going to sleep.  He's starting to chew/suck on my clothes, and nestling his nose/face into my clothes I'm wearing.  Does a cat's sense of smell develop more as he/she gets older?

Answer
Cathy,

Cats have an amazing sense of smell, which is something like 14 times that of humans. Your cat will sniff you whenever you come home and They can tell who you are, what gender, and where you were an hour ago. They identify boundaries, people, other animals, foods, and their entire scope of their environment by smell. Your kitty will patrol around, checking for new things in its territory and will detect the slightest change. A cat can tell not only who you are, but also your attitude, all from scents.

Is your cat neutered? Are you accidently touching a bush when you come home? Has there been another cat in your car? From somewhere you are bringing home some interesting smells. And he likes them!

No, the cat's sense of smell doesn't get better after a year old, he is just discovering new smells.

Suckling on clothing is usually a sign that the cat was weaned too early.  He is getting comfort from the nestling and sucking on your clothes. They usually grow out of it. He may also be feeling insecure and lonely when you are gone.

You may want to get another kitty as a friend and playmate for Taz. It would be company and comfort for him (after the get-aquainted period is over) when you are gone and he will have someone to snuggle with besides you.

I hope this was helpful.
Carol